Everything I Thought I Knew
by drotuno
Summary: What if the one person you thought you could count on suddenly changed before your very eyes? Edward Masen is tired of being invisible and the shoulder to cry on. Bella is starting to feel something different for her best friend. What if it's too late? AH
1. Chapter 1

**A/N. So, yeah I was supposed to be on a break, but as some of you know, plot bunnies can attack at any time, and this is no different. :) This is such a change of style for me, so I'm terrified as I post this.**

**Perhaps I should warn you guys on this story. This is a completely different direction than you guys are used to. At it's core, my values stay the same...HEA, E/B, no cheating...blah, blah, blah, but I've been told that I should warn you that this gets a touch frustrating and angsty. It's frustrating, because it's shorter chapters AND it's only one POV per chapter. It's angsty on a limited basis. This is a short story. Seven chapters and that includes the Epi. The POV's will alternate between Edward and Bella until the end. **

**The inspiration from this is hilarious...definitely funnier than the fic itself, but I got this idea from an episode of Bosom Buddies. LOL Don't ask, but I swore I could do something else with it, so I started to write, and here you go. It became more drama than comedy, more pitiful than sitcom-like. **

**There are two songs that have inspired this fic, both by Lady Antebellum: _Just a Kiss _and _If I Knew Then_. Give them a listen if you want, because they do represent this story very well. However, you'll see the lyrics eventually. It's been so long since music has inspired me that I couldn't help but go with it. (You Angelward fans will understand that! LOL) **

**Okay, nervously, I'll let you get on with it...meet my sweet Edward Masen...**

CHAPTER 1

**EDWARD**

"Hey, Bell! I need..."

"It's in your inbox," she called back before I could finish.

I chuckled, shaking my head. "Thanks," I said, tugging the file folder that I'd been about to ask Bella for to me. "And can you..."

"Mr. Thomas is in the conference room right now," she interrupted. "He's having a cup of coffee, talking on his phone to his wife about dinner plans. He's fine for the moment."

"You want to lead the meeting for me, too?" I muttered sarcastically under my breath, because this was Emmett's forte, not mine.

"No," Bella laughed, leaning in the doorway of my office. "You're quite capable of getting this shit done on your own, Edward, even without Emmett."

I grinned, but ran a nervous hand through my hair. "This deal could make us, Bella."

"I know," she stated softly. "Mr. Thomas wouldn't be here if he didn't like your ideas better than anyone else's, so just get in there and show him we rock."

I sighed, pushing up my glasses and looking down at the drawings I'd been working on for this perspective client. It was a huge deal, because it would mean the redesign of several businesses. Mr. Thomas owned three strip malls in the Tampa Bay area, but they were all outdated, all in dire need of refurbishing, and all in areas that would get our name out there.

Emmett and I had started Cullen and Masen Design Firm straight out of college. We'd attended USF together, and we couldn't be two more different people, but we'd met in the dorms, forming a friendship instantly. Emmett was an outgoing, former football playing, big, booming personality. I was a number crunching computer geek that could run a CAD program blindfolded. Emmett had the people skills; I didn't. We were a little over a year out of school, struggling with a few small jobs, but we needed this one big break, and my partner was stuck on the other side of town in traffic.

I looked up to Bella, who was patiently waiting for me to get my shit together. She'd attended school with us. Why she'd followed us, I'd never know, but Emmett and I would've never survived our first year without her. She was fucking amazing. She never got rattled, never left us needing for anything, and always pushed us for bigger and better. She was our receptionist, our publicist, our cheerleader, our personal assistant, and our calm in the storm. She was also the best friend I'd ever had.

Between Bella and her brother, Jasper, we wouldn't have made it this far without them. She ran the office, and Jasper was our construction manager. And that was what made our firm unique, because not only did we design the buildings, we had our own construction crew to do the work.

"We can't wait on Em?" I asked, almost sounding like I was whining.

"No, you can't, Edward. You have to do this alone," she soothed, walking to my desk. She picked up the file, the drawings, and my hand, tugging me up to my feet. "Stop relying on Emmett. You're the brains of this operation. You don't need to schmooze people. Just show them what you can do," she said the whole time as she straightened my tie and sweater vest, shoved me into my coat, and even raked her fingers through my unruly hair. Lastly, she took my glasses off, cleaned them gently, only to put them back perfectly straight onto my face.

"Yeah, but..."

She smiled, and it was all sweet and sympathetic. "Stop it. I know you don't like this part, sweetie, but I'm thinking you can't go wrong by just being honest. Show him what you've done. Show him your ideas, and let him decide. The worst he can say is no, Edward, but play to your strengths."

I scoffed, rolling my eyes.

"You _do_ have strengths," she laughed, smoothing my collar and forcing me to look at her. "Yes, you stay locked behind a computer all day. Yes, you can calculate shit in your head, but you also have an amazing eye for details. I'm well aware that you aren't going to sing the National Anthem at the Super Bowl in front of a gazillion people, but you'd probably design the stadium it was playing in better than how it sits now," she said with a grin, giving me a wink. "Now, go show Mr. Thomas that you're all over this like white on rice, and then we'll all go celebrate at Phil's. It's been a long damn week with you guys, and I need to hang with my friends, not my bosses."

"Yes, ma'am," I sighed and groaned at the same time. With one last pleading glance to her over my shoulder as she shoved me out of my office, I said, "I'm going...I'm going."

~oOo~

"To Eddie!" Emmett boomed, holding his mug of beer up in the air at the table.

"Don't call me that!" I snapped, rolling my eyes at Bella's laugh. I hated that name.

"Fine... To _Edward_," he revised, still grinning. "Nice job, bud!"

"Edward!" the whole table chanted, and mugs clinked together.

"I told you that you could do it," Bella said with a smirk. "Say it, Edward..."

"I'll never doubt you again," I chuckled, leaning in to kiss the side of her head.

"That's right," she agreed, her head falling back with her laughter.

She smelled like flowers and something I could never quite place. She was a beautiful girl, and I never understood how someone hadn't snatched her up already. She'd dated a bit in college, but it was nothing ever serious.

"Hey, Edward," Jasper drawled from across the table, jerking his chin toward the bar's door. "Kate's here, dude."

Immediately, my head spun to take a look at the stunning woman that was walking through the door. She worked in the law office next door to Cullen and Masen as a legal assistant, and I'd wanted to ask her out for ages, but I could never find the courage.

"Do it, man," he urged, raising his eyebrows up and down.

"Fuck that. You need to get laid some time this decade," Emmett chuckled. "Yo, Katie! Come join us!"

Kate looked up and smiled, gesturing to the bar that she was going to order before coming over.

"Damn it," I groaned, shaking my head, because the girl made me almost sick with nerves. In fact, my palms had already broken out in a sweat the second I'd laid eyes on her. I pushed my glasses up, ran a slightly shaky hand through my hair, and swallowed nervously.

"You'll never know unless you try, Edward," Alice said from Jasper's side.

They'd been together since high school and had never even had a fight, as far as I knew. She was still in college, taking more classes to finish her Masters in Interior Design. She interned for us during her breaks and holidays, because she eventually wanted to add that element to our company. We were all for it, but we were willing to wait until she was finished.

"Hey, guys!" Kate beamed, walking up with a gorgeous blonde at her side. "This is my cousin, Rose. She just moved here from Atlanta to open her own styling salon."

"Well, _hello_, Rose," Emmett crooned, and Jasper and I rolled her eyes, because Emmett was shameless. "The name's Emmett Cullen. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"Rosalie Hale," she purred back, tilting her head at my business partner.

Fuck, if he didn't already have her hook, line, and sinker.

"Dear God," Bella snickered next to me as Rose blushed, but took the man's hand anyway.

"Let's play pool!" he suggested, and he looked over to the bar. "Phil! We're gonna rack 'em up in the back room, okay?"

"Sure, Em," Phil, the owner of our favorite sports bar, former professional baseball player, and Bella's step-father called back. "Don't make a mess!" he warned, raising an eyebrow our way.

"Yeah, yeah," Emmett chortled, waving us all to go with him.

"I'm out," Kate giggled, taking Jasper's vacated seat across from me.

"Hey, Bells!" Phil called from the bar. "Your mom's on the phone!"

"Okay," Bella sighed, rolling her eyes. "Five bucks says she got another computer virus again..." she muttered, before walking away and leaving me and Kate alone at the table as Jasper, Alice, Rose, and Emmett headed toward the game room.

"Celebrating, Edward?" Kate asked, gesturing to all the empty shot glasses, beer mugs, and half empty pitchers.

"Yeah, we...we won a pretty big client today," I murmured, looking more at my beer than her face.

"Nice job!" she praised, and I felt the blush creep up my face before I could blink.

I nodded, pushing my glasses up. "Thanks," I sighed. "So what's new with you?" I asked, trying to get the attention off of me and onto her.

"I just found out the guy I've been seeing has been cheating on me for the last few months." She huffed an incredulous laugh, rolling her eyes. "That's why Rose and I are out tonight. It's sort of a...moving on thing."

"Well, that's good...that you...that you're moving on," I sputtered idiotically, but she suddenly exploded.

"We were talking marriage!" she stated, her voice almost a growl, and then she proceeded to tell me all about it. She'd started getting suspicious when her lawyer boyfriend started taking late night calls, staying late at the office, and smelling freshly showered after a simple lunch with a "client." After I received all the details of that, I grimaced when her talk turned to man-hating. We were all dogs, we were all after one thing, and not one of us could be trusted.

At one point, she was in tears, and I slid a bar napkin across the table toward her. She thanked me, only to continue to berate my gender. I stayed quiet, only hmming and ahhing when necessary.

I glanced around the room as she continued to talk, watching Bella lean against the bar with the phone to her ear. I smirked when she rolled her eyes and shook her head at whatever her mother was babbling about in her ear. I gazed into the game room, seeing that the game of pool was just about over, which caused my attention to snap back to Kate.

"I just don't understand it, Edward," Kate sniffled, shaking her head. "I thought Brad leaving his wife was a good thing."

"Well, theoretically speaking," I said, clearing my throat, "if you can take someone away from their significant other, then it only goes to reason that they can be taken away from you." I shrugged when she gazed up at me, but it was only rational thinking. She was quiet for a moment, and I pointed behind her. "Looks like the game is over," I muttered, internally berating myself for basically telling her that dating a married man was cheating and stupid.

"Oh, good," she sighed, downing the rest of her beer quickly.

"Hey, um... Would you like to go... I mean, can I take you out some time?" I asked her, not wanting any of my friends to hear this shit.

"Oh, you're sweet, Edward," she crooned, getting up and kissing my cheek. "I'm going to take a break from the dating scene for a while. But we can still be friends, right?"

I wanted to grimace, wanted to tell her friends were for chumps, and I wanted to tell her that I wouldn't cheat on her, but none of it would come out. I wanted to tell her that she was sexy and deserved better than cheating assholes, but I was already deflated.

"Yeah, right... friends," I muttered, downing the rest of my beer. "Sure, that's great."

She gripped my hand, giving it a squeeze. "You're a great listener, honey. Thanks for letting me rant."

I stood up when she left me to join her cousin and my friends in the game room, pushing my glasses up my nose, and looked to Bella as she walked back to the table. "I'm heading home. Need a ride?" I asked, because she'd left her car at her apartment.

"Yeah, sure," she murmured, frowning up at me. "You okay, Edward?"

"I'm fine," I said as I held the door for her. Unfortunately, it came out more harshly than I'd meant it to.

"You don't sound fine," she muttered once we were in the car.

"I just..." I groaned, my head falling back to the headrest of the car. "I just got...humiliated."

"Oh," she sighed, grimacing just a bit, and her nose wrinkled in an adorable way. "Kate?" she verified, and I nodded. "What did she say?"

"That we could be..._friends_," I said, sneering on the last word.

"Well, then, she's blind, Edward," Bella stated simply, shrugging when I rolled my head to look at her. "If she can't see you for how awesome you are, then she's not worth the time, sweetie."

I pursed my lips at her and shook my head. "I guess, Bell."

"Don't guess. Believe it," she urged, shoving my shoulder a bit. "Now, let's celebrate the right way. Let's grab some terrible drive-thru and eat it watching _Lord of the Rings_."

I grinned, broke into a laugh, and nodded, because Bella knew me so well. "Okay, Sam," I chuckled.

"Drive, Frodo."

~oOo~

"I don't get it," I sighed, falling onto Bella's sofa. "Emmett can walk into a room, treat a woman like a Neanderthal, and he comes out a winner."

Bella snorted into a giggle, sitting down next to me and curling her legs under her. "Okay, first of all...that's not winning. Have you actually _seen_ the women Em ends up with?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"Yeah, they're hot," I grumbled, picking at a string on my sweater vest.

"And dumb...and needy...and clingy...and been stuck more times than a pin cushion," she added, almost with a growl. "They're walking petrie dishes. Is that what you want?"

"No..." I huffed, knowing she was right. "I just want..."

"Something more than friendship," she finished for me, and I turned to nod at her. "God, Edward," she groaned, cupping my face. "You're way too special to waste this sweet face, that smart brain, and that very pretty smile on someone so vapid that they can barely remember their own home address. Please don't be like Emmett. There's someone out there for you. I promise."

"You think my smile's pretty?" I asked, shocked at this admission from her, because she'd never said anything about my looks before.

Bella giggled, nodding slowly. "Yeah, silly. So don't worry about Kate. There's probably a reason Brandon cheated on her."

"Brad."

"Whatever."

We were quiet for a moment, the movie playing endlessly in the background, because we didn't need to really _watch _it. We'd seen it more times than I could count. We'd studied for finals, planned Cullen and Masen, and solved all the worlds problems, all while Hobbits were chased by black hooded creatures on horses.

I turned to look at Bella. "Why don't you date?"

She laughed once and tilted her head at me. "I do. I just don't bring them around you and Emmett. Em tends to be..."

"Protective."

"Right." Her eyes drifted to the TV, but she watched it unseeingly. "Besides, Riley was the last guy I went out with," she said, sighing deeply and turning back to me.

"Bell, that was a year ago," I pointed out, sitting up straighter.

"Taking care of you and Em is a twenty-four-seven job, Edward," she chuckled, like it didn't bother her at all. "Riley was...handsome, but he didn't get me. You two understand me." She shrugged a shoulder, but turned fully my way, this time shutting off the TV. "This is really bothering you, isn't it?"

"I guess," I hedged, copying her shrug. "I'm twenty-four-years-old, and I've never even had a girlfriend. You're the only girl that doesn't make me nervous. I haven't been with anyone since freshman year, and I still suspect that Emmett put the girl up to it at that party."

Bella sighed, scooted closer, and picked up my hand. "No, he didn't," she chuckled, squeezing my hand. "Haley liked you."

"She did?"

"Yeah," she sighed, still smiling. "Yeah, but she hated that you and I were friends," she stated with a smirk. "Look, sweetie, you need to figure out what it is that you want in a girlfriend. Kate's not it. Trust me. She's beautiful, yes, but she also uses her men like fashion accessories. They are to be seen and not heard."

I snorted, rolling my eyes.

"Because if this is just about sex..."

"No!" I gasped, shaking my head. "Yeah, that's a part of it, but for once, I'd just like to be...noticed. I know what I am, Bell. I know I'm not exactly GQ, and I know I'd rather quote statistics than discuss pop culture. I'm skinny and like sci-fi movies..."

She grinned, but it wasn't in a teasing manner. "You're not skinny, Edward. You ride your bike to work three times a week. You're lean, yes, but toned. You have your own unique style of dressing, but it's just you. And you're extremely smart. Please don't apologize to anyone for that. Intelligence is unbelievably attractive, sweetie. You don't see yourself the right way."

I rolled my eyes at all that she was saying, because she always seemed to see the brighter shit in life, and I just couldn't grasp it at the moment.

She groaned, shaking her head, and I noticed that her cheeks were a touch pink. "You don't see yourself the way that I see you."

Staring at her, I realized that she wasn't meeting my gaze. "Bell?" I asked, my voice almost a whisper, because she sounded like she was trying to tell me something, but it couldn't be true.

Bella was stunning, with dark hair and dark eyes. She could hold her own with Emmett and his boisterous ways, but she could talk computers and sci-fi movies with me for an entire weekend without stopping. She turned heads everywhere we went, but she never gave them a second thought. Her last boyfriend, Riley, was a simple-minded guy that looked like an underwear model. What could she possibly see in me? What if she saw more in me than she actually lead on? What if there was more there than friendship?

And I found myself really looking at her. I'd seen her in various states of dress, from pajamas to dresses. She had a killer body in jeans and shorts, but was even more appealing in sweats like she was wearing right then. I'd known her since we first moved into the dorms at college, yet no matter what, she was the only girl I never got nervous around, even from the very beginning. When I first met her, I was jealous of her easiness around others, how guys flirted with her all the time, because I'd latched onto her immediately. We were in some of the same classes, watched most of the same movies, and had met Emmett at the same time – the day we all moved in. The ease of our friendship made me grab on and not want to let go of her, but did that mean that it was something else?

"You're my best friend, Edward..." she whispered softly, looking up at me with a pain-filled expression, and suddenly, my quick little fantasy was dashed.

"Right," I huffed with a nod. "_Friends_."

There was that damn word again. I was pretty sure I hated it.

"I have to go," I said, standing abruptly.

"Okay," she answered, and she looked just a bit hurt at my sudden leaving.

"I'll see you at work Monday," I said, grabbing my coat and walking out the door. I pulled my phone out of my pocket, because there was only one person that could help me now.

**A/N... Oh dear...Edward's had pretty bad day. Next up, Bella gets her say in, not to mention more of her opinion on Kate. And...Why did Kate really turn him down?**

**I need to thank the usual suspects...JenRar for beta'ing and totally yelling at me about this story. To GooberLou and MedusaInNY for pre-reading this little fic, because I'm still frantic about it.**

**Okay, so let me hear you. I don't usually reply to reviews, but I will post my traditional twice a week. This story is complete, so the next posting will be on Wednesday. :) See you then... Later! :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N... Smiles at how many times who is now deemed Sweetward was called "adorkable." LOL Yes, yes. He is, and he's confused, but now Bella gets her say. She isn't as..._aware_ as you guys seem to think she is. **

**I want to thank you for all the reviews. It was good to see some old friends, along with some new ones. (Waves and blows kisses!) Okay, so on with Bella's side of the situation. Let's meet our girl, shall we?**

CHAPTER 2

**BELLA**

My eyes narrowed on Kate as she walked into the cafe. It was the place we all got our morning coffee and ate lunch, because it was right across the street from our building. I didn't know what she had said to Edward at Phil's that night, but I was pretty sure she'd crushed him, because he hadn't been to work in a week. The fact that she was practically slobbering all over a new guy made me hate her all the more, but I'd never really liked her to begin with.

Edward had called the next Monday morning, asking to speak with Emmett, and had explained that he had family in town and needed to take a few days off. He'd taken the whole week, and I missed him like crazy, especially since he'd left my apartment so abruptly.

I'd called and texted him, but his answers were short and almost harsh, stating that his cousin was in town and that he'd see me at work. I'd tried apologizing, enticing him to the movies, and telling him that Emmett was stuck on the new girl, Rose, but he wasn't engaging with me at all. I was slightly hurt, because despite the fact that I worked for him, he was my best friend.

Gagging a bit as I watched Kate tell her companion goodbye, I shook my head and went back to my sandwich and book. It was easier to blame her for Edward's absence, because my imagination ran wild with it. I could fantasize that she'd crushed my sweet friend, because he was so vulnerable to begin with. He was brilliant, but he was a little naïve, too. He saw a pretty girl in Kate, and I saw a leech. He had no idea that girls ogled him everywhere we went. He considered himself a nerd, and God, he was so damn shy. I supposed he was a little nerdy, but he...wasn't. Not to me.

I found Edward to be beautiful – both inside and out. He was a gentleman, soft spoken, and so very kindhearted. I also thought he was extremely handsome – something he never saw in himself. He had these big green eyes behind round, wire-framed glasses, with eyelashes so long, they practically brushed against the lenses. He had dark hair, with reddish highlights that most women had to pay for. He was tall and lean, well-built. Yeah, he kinda dressed a little weird – sweater vests with suits, shirts almost buttoned all the way to the top, even without a tie, and Converse sneakers in almost every color. The man didn't own a pair of dress shoes. I didn't care what he wore, because he was just...Edward.

I'd liked him – and Emmett, for that matter – the minute we met in college. We were living in the same dorm, and Edward and I had a few things in common, including a few of the same classes. Emmett was Edward's roommate and had hit on my roommate, Lauren, at the time, and we were inseparable from that moment on. Lauren and Emmett didn't last, but the rest of us hung out every day after that. Each of us were different, but it worked.

I was protective of Edward, because I saw how nervous he was around everyone, especially girls, and Emmett was protective of both of us. He was the big guy, the jock. He hated when guys overstepped their boundaries with me and despised it when Edward was picked on. We became our own little family. I was pretty sure that we all survived four years of college that way.

"Bella!" Kate gushed, sitting uninvited at my table. She was beaming, wearing smeared lipstick and looking a bit disheveled, but I couldn't find it in myself to let her know. "Where's Edward? I haven't seen him around."

"He took a few days off," I answered, barely looking up from my book. "Family obligations."

"Oh, okay," she sighed, leaning her chin onto her hands. "I wanted to thank him again for listening to me. I must've rambled on and on about my problems, but he was right. Once a cheater, always a cheater."

My gaze snapped to hers, trying my damnedest not to sneer...or spit on her. I wasn't sure what I wanted to do more. It wasn't that I wanted her to like Edward, because I was pretty sure there wasn't a girl out there that would understand him, that wouldn't take advantage of him, and wouldn't shatter his sweet heart, but she could've treated him a little nicer. And because she hadn't, I hated her.

"Well, I'm sure you can thank him soon," I sighed, gathering up my garbage. "He's supposed to be back tomorrow."

We walked together back across the street, and she chuckled to herself. When I looked over at her, she asked, "Can you believe he asked me out?"

Yeah, it took all I had not to punch her, because she had no idea what it probably took for him to work up the courage to even speak to her, and then to have her turn him down... No wonder he said he felt humiliated.

"Yes," I stated, almost harshly. My eyes narrowed on her again. "Is that really so surprising? You must get..._propositioned_ daily, Kate."

"I do, but that's not why I turned him down, Bella," she countered, looking a little wounded as we stopped outside Cullen and Masen. "I turned him down for you. I thought you two were..."

I was shaking my head no before she even finished. "No, we're friends."

"Yeah," she scoffed with a little laugh. "You keep telling yourself that, honey. I've seen you two work together, sit together, ignoring everyone around you. I've seen him kiss your head and the way that you two look at each other." She stopped and studied my face for just a moment. Tilting her head at me, she asked, "You really don't see it, do you?"

I shook my head slowly, frowning at her. "We've been that way for years..."

She smirked, rolling her eyes, but a spark of something flickered across her face, before she said, "Well, anyway... He's not my type. A little too..."

"Intelligent?" I growled, grabbing the door that led into my office. "Sweet? Gentlemanly?"

"I was going to say...fashionably challenged, but now I'm thinking..._taken_," she chuckled, holding her hands up in surrender. "You really should take a step back and look at the two of you."

Emmett tugged open the door to the office, looming large in the small space, but his face was as it always was – smiling, happy, and easy going. "Katie, just the girl I needed to see. We're all meeting up at Phil's later. Why don't you and Rose join us? Eddie's bringing his cousin in before he heads back to Chicago."

"Yeah, sure I'll be there," she told him.

"Sweet, and did you know you're a little...smeared?" he asked.

It took all I had to keep my face passive, like I hadn't seen that shit.

"Have a nice lunch, Kate?"

"Shut it," she snickered, using the glass door to check herself. "You got the hots for my cuz?" she teased him, giving him a wink. "Don't screw her over, Em. She'll tear you apart."

He grinned, all boyish and naughty. "God, I hope so," he sighed dreamily, but dramatically.

"Ugh," I groaned, pushing past him and heading straight for my desk. Emmett chuckled, following behind me. "Shut up, Emmett. I don't want to hear a word about your debauchery. It's like listening to my brother and Alice."

He laughed, his head falling back as he took a chair in front of my desk. "You know, Bells, we could've made an amazing couple."

"Ew," I scoffed, pulling out the file I needed to prepare for Jasper to take on the next job. "I'm sorry, but I never could see past your giant ego or your lecherous ways with women."

"Or Eddie..."

I sighed, closing my eyes and shaking my head. "What is it with everyone today? Edward and I are friends."

"Yeah, that's the bullshit he tries to sell me, too," he chuckled. "In fact, I called him on it just a minute ago when he called me about meeting up at Phil's. He said that someone like _you_—" he pointed to me "—would never date someone like _him_. He didn't know why _anyone_ would date someone like _him._"

I tsked, groaning and shaking my head again. "Oh, Edward... I don't know why he sees himself that way."

"Because he's a dork," Emmett snickered. "He's _our_ dork, but he's a dork, nonetheless. And I'd beat the fucking piss out of someone else if they called him that."

I laughed, because that was the damned truth, but my laughter died quickly. "God, Emmett, something happened to him when he asked Kate out, and he wasn't right when he dropped me home."

He grimaced and nodded. "Yeah, I've been picking up that vibe from him on the phone. He mumbled something about making some overdue changes."

I looked up at the clock. "It's almost two o'clock, Em. You'd better head to that job site," I sighed, pointing to my calendar.

"Yeah, got it," he groaned, standing up from the chair. Just before he walked into his office, he turned to look at me. "You know, I told Eddie he was blind. That he didn't see you the right way. You've been in love with him since we met, haven't you?"

I scowled and waved him away, because I didn't have that answer. "Go away, Emmett."

He laughed, muttering something like, "I thought so." He came back out with his briefcase and his suit coat in his hands. "Hey, meet you at Phil's, okay?"

"Yeah, sure. I'll lock up," I said, not even bothering to look away from my computer screen. "See you there."

~oOo~

"Hi, Mom," I sighed, falling down on a bar stool. I was the first one there.

"Hey, baby," she crooned, leaning over the bar and giving my forehead a quick kiss. "How are all my boys?"

I smiled, shaking my head. She counted Emmett and Edward as her own from the minute she met them. She, like me, had attached herself to them both. She thought Emmett was the funniest thing, but she fawned over Edward. She treated him special, because she said he looked lost and sweet, that his intelligence most likely made him feel lonely, especially since his own family was far away in Chicago.

"You'll see them all soon," I told her, taking the beer she slid across the bar. "Jasper's picking up Alice now, and Emmett's on his way from a job site."

"And my sweet boy?" she asked, and I grinned up at her.

"I'm not sure," I admitted, shrugging one shoulder. "He's got family in town, so he hasn't been at work this week."

"When will you finally come to your senses and snatch that boy up?" she chuckled, shaking her head at me.

I groaned and stood up. "This is ridiculous. _We're friends_! I'll be out on the deck. Okay?"

"Sure, baby," she sang, greeting a customer coming in the door. "That band should start once the sun goes down."

"Fine," I said, not even bothering to turn around.

I fell into a chair with my beer still in hand, gazing out over Rocky Point and pulling my jacket closer, due to the chilly November sea air. It was a beautiful sunset over the bay, and I loved that the salt sea breeze could usually clear my head, but it wasn't working this time. There was too much going on inside my mind. I'd missed Edward all week. I'd worried about him, and now _three_ people had told me that they saw me and Edward differently – all in one freakin' day. But the question was... Did I see us that way?

As the setting sun slowly dipped below the Gulf water, the band set up for their performance. They were pretty good and played at my parents' bar quite frequently. The deck doors creaked open, letting out the loud laughter that Emmett just naturally brought out in people. I smiled, watching my brother, Alice, Emmett, Kate, and Rose pile out onto the deck, the latter of which seemed to be taking Emmett's heavily draped arm over her shoulders just fine.

Jasper pulled two tables together, falling down in the chair next to mine. "Hey, Bells," he sang, nudging me with his elbow. "Mom says she offended you again."

I chuckled, looking up at his sweet, wry smile. "No, I'm fine. She's just the third person _today_ to tell me that I'm in love with someone, and apparently, I'm completely oblivious."

He chuckled, kissing the side of my head. "Sometimes, others see us better than we see ourselves. Are they right?"

"Not you, too, Jazz," I groaned, starting to get up.

"No, no, no," he laughed, making me sit back down. "I'm withholding my opinion until you answer the question. B, this is _me_ you're talkin' to."

I smiled, but sighed the first breath of relief of the day, because Jasper never judged me on anything. We were only a year apart, and we had been really close growing up.

I stared into his deep blue eyes for just a moment. "I don't know," I whispered, shaking my head. "Do I care about Edward? Yes, of course. Do I think someone will hurt him? Most definitely. Will I kick their ass when they do? Sure." I took a deep breath, and he let me continue. "I've missed him this week," I muttered, looking up to make sure our conversation was still being ignored. "And I know something his bothering him, Jasper. I want to protect him, take care of him, make him laugh. I can be myself with him, and I'd die if we weren't friends anymore. I want to see him happy."

My brother smiled, tilting his head at me. "Sounds like you have your answer, B. See...I feel all those same things for Ali."

I swallowed thickly, because I was scared to death of something changing. Suddenly, I remembered every laugh, every kiss to my head, every sweet smile he only sent my way, and my stomach felt like it was filled with butterflies.

"What do I do?" I squeaked.

"Tell him." He held up his hand to stop my immediate protest. "Look, Edward doesn't want to do _shit_ without your say so, because he wants your opinion on everything we do. You're already as close as two people could get, but you're missing the one thing that would push you over the edge. He leans on you when he's insecure about something, and he lights the fuck up when you walk into the damn room. Hell, you finish each other's sentences, for God's sake. So I'm pretty sure...you two are readin' the same book, but you both need to get on the same damn page."

"I'll lose my best friend, Jazz."

"You'll gain..._more_." He raised an eyebrow at me until I nodded. "Just think about it, B."

"Okay," I sighed, feeling a bit better.

We looked up, and I grinned at who strolled out onto the deck like he owned the place.

"Jamie!" I squealed, launching up from my chair and into Edward's cousin's arms.

"Bella-boo," he chuckled, catching me and swinging me around. "How are you, you beautiful thang?" he asked, kissing my cheek, but he hadn't put me down yet.

"I'm good. When I heard the word cousin, I assumed Tanya," I teased him.

"Oh, please," he scoffed, rolling his eyes. "My lesbian twin is off with some butch chick for the month. Some eco-friendly, hiking nonsense."

I laughed, kissing his cheek. "There were some serious mess ups in that womb, buddy."

"Yeah, my dad says the same thing...fraternal twins...the son is gay, and the daughter is a lesbian. The X and Y chromosomes got all sorts of fucking lost," Jamie chuckled.

James and Tanya Masen had come to visit Edward every summer while he was in school. They'd fit in with us just perfectly. I preferred Jamie to Tanya, simply because Tanya hit on me relentlessly. They were both beautiful and blond, both carried themselves with grace and style, and they had more money than God, though you wouldn't know it, because they were very down to Earth.

"I'm sure you remind him of that," I teased.

"Every damn day, Bella-boo," he said with a cheesy grin.

"How long can you stay?" I asked him, wriggling until he finally set me on my feet, though he didn't let me stray far from him.

"For a little while," he sighed. "I was just answering an emergency call from my cuz."

The deck doors opened, and so did my mouth. Out walked someone I knew, but I...didn't. He was sex on two legs, wearing dark jeans, a tight white t-shirt, and a black leather jacket. Edward's hair was cropped shorter, but still was in an attractive disarray, and it looked like he hadn't shaved in days. As amazing as he looked, I could tell this wasn't my Edward. Gone were his glasses, so piercing green eyes swept over the deck. They held none of Edward's usual open sweetness, and even the smile he gave to the people calling his name from the table wasn't his usual shy smile.

"Shit, Jamie," I hissed, glaring up at him. "What the hell did you do to him?"

He sighed, and I noted his face held a touch of sadness as he watched his cousin get oohed and ahhed over at the table. "Only what he asked of me, Bella-boo. All he'd tell me was that he was tired of being himself, so I gave him a makeover."

"Yeah, but this is more than just a make..." I started, but was interrupted.

"Hello, Bella," Edward said, his voice still its usual softness, but it held a touch of aloofness that hadn't been there before.

If I'd thought the change in him was immense from the door, it was nothing compared to how he looked, how he smelled up close. It was an assault on my senses. He stood taller, his shoulders broad. He smelled like expensive cologne and leather, but it wasn't overwhelming; it was alluring. And the fact that I could see his eyes without the glasses made me realize that they were the most amazing shade of deep green, almost matching the sea water behind him.

The butterflies in my stomach gave a huge lurch, and I braced myself, because what everyone else thought was true.

I was in love with my best friend, but it wasn't the man currently in front of me. "Hey, Edward," I sighed in defeat, because it seemed like the man I loved was no longer around.

**A/N... Oh, boy... So it seems that Bella is finally figured it out, but Edward is...well, experimenting. Who better for a makeover than your flamboyantly gay cousin, right?**

**Once again, we switch pov's to Edward next time, so you'll get to see where he stands. And Bella isn't the only one that starts to hear how their friendship is perceived. I also need to let you guys know that this isn't about everyone else...like there's not a lot about Em's and Rose's budding relationship. This story is strictly about E/B. I just thought I should clarify that now.**

**I need to thank JenRar for beta'ing this for me, who really wasn't sure which direction I was going when I started it. To GooberLou and MedusaInNY for pre-reading it. Without their feedback – and believe me, there was a ton of it – I wouldn't have gotten through this.**

**Okay, so next update will most likely be on Sunday. Let me know what you think... Until then, Later! :)**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N... I'm feeling rather generous today, or maybe just itching to move this story up a notch, but yeah, I'm posting early. Will that mean I won't post on Sunday? No. I'm still going to update Sunday, too. :)**

**Now, here's where I need you guys to have faith in me. Those of you that are used to me know that I am a HEA girl to my very soul, so you'll just have to rough it for just a few. Like I told you from the start, this is only 7 chapters. Not much about this little story drags out. **

**That being said, let's see where our dear Edward stands...**

CHAPTER 3

**EDWARD**

"I do believe you're my best work, Eddie," my cousin said, eying me once we parked. "And that includes that hot ass pool boy I kidnapped for Spring Break week a few years ago. Hmm, all those abs... Hell, I barely wanted him covered, but cut-off jean shorts were so...Daisy Duke."

I rolled my eyes at him, but said nothing, because I wasn't sure I was ready to get out of the car yet.

"Aren't you going to tell me not to call you that?" he asked, turning a little my way.

"No." I shrugged. "Maybe I need to loosen up."

He shook his head, tsking dramatically at me. "There was nothing wrong with you before. Okay, so some new clothes won't kill you, but I kinda liked my super smart, highly motivated cousin. But I, for one, have to tell you to just _be yourself_."

I looked up at him as he raised a professionally quaffed eyebrow at me. I knew he was speaking from experience, about him being gay. He and Tanya had decided to come out to my aunt and uncle at the same time, because they at least had each other as support. As kids, we already were well aware, but to admit it aloud to adults and parents had been a really big deal to everyone involved.

"You've never been invisible, Jamie," I muttered, looking out the windshield. "Like _never_."

He chuckled and placed a hand on my shoulder, giving it a squeeze. "Neither have you. What's Bella-boo say about this?"

"She has nothing to do with this," I snapped, blinking rapidly, because I wasn't used to the damn contacts in my eyes.

"Huh," he huffed humorlessly. "Right." He poked my shoulder to make me look his way again. "That gorgeous girl loves you...no matter what you're wearing. So you wanna tell me why I just spent a week dressing you, training you on how to be someone you're not? Because watching you squick out over touching your own eyeball just to put those damn contacts in was not exactly on my list of top ten favorite days."

"You have a list?"

"Do I need to bring up Jose the pool boy again?"

"Uh, no."

"Good, because he ranks up there." Jamie laughed, poking me again. "Tell me, cousin."

"I'm tired of being just a friend."

"With Bella? Or all women?"

I grimaced, because I wasn't sure of the answer. If I said Bella, then that meant my friendship with her was a lie, or at least over, because I had to admit I wanted more. If I said all women, then I just sounded just as desperate as I felt. I shook my head, because it wasn't all women. It was Bella. But if I couldn't have Bella, then what did I do?

"Oh, Ed... I'm really disappointed in you," he sighed, and my head spun to gape at him. "You should know that girl better than anyone. She's never given a shit about this stuff," he said, gesturing to my new clothes.

"She'll never see me as anything more than just her friend, Jamie," I sighed, my head falling back to the head rest. "She said so last week."

"Perhaps," he mused, rubbing his chin. "So that's what this is about? You're gonna show her what she's missing?"

I shrugged, pulling my keys out of the ignition.

"I can teach you what to do in order to just get laid, cousin, but I can't help you when it comes to Bella," he stated. "You want to whore around...that's fine. But only you and Bella can figure out this friendship thing you have going. I've never believed you were _just friends_." He stopped me before I could open the car door. "What are _your_ top ten days? Hmm? And just who was there with you? Think about it."

With that said, he was up and out of the car, slamming the door behind him and leaving me with that last thought. I got out and followed him, because I didn't have to think about it. My favorite days all centered around Bella.

"Edward!" I heard once I was inside Phil's, and I couldn't help but smile at Bella's mother.

"Hey, Renee," I said, hugging her.

"Don't you look handsome," she gushed, kissing my cheek. "Bella's out on the deck with everyone else, sweetheart."

"Yes, ma'am...and thank you." I couldn't help but blush, because Mrs. Dwyer was a sweet woman, and a substitute mother, since my own was in Chicago.

"Hey, Edward," Jessica, the girl that worked behind the bar on busy nights, called.

"Hi, Jess," I muttered, noticing that she was looking at me different. In fact, I felt more eyes on me, and I turned to glance around the bar. More than one woman was looking my way.

"Want a beer?" Jess asked, pouring one for me anyway.

I took it, feeling a little unnerved at all the attention, but I had to admit it felt...really good.

Armed with that new epiphany, I took my beer and headed out to the deck. Jamie had already wrapped up Bella, and they were laughing once I opened the door. She was so beautiful, wearing jeans that hugged every curve and a long sleeved shirt that made her breasts stand out even more than they already did. Her hair was in a ponytail, most likely tossed up due to the chilly breeze that was blowing in off the bay. But the table up front exploded in greetings.

"Holy shit," Emmett boomed, and I walked to the table. "Gone for a week, dude, and look at you!"

"Edward," Jasper said with a nod and smile, but his eyes drifted past me for just a moment.

"Nice look, Edward," Alice giggled, hopping down from her stool to hug me. "What brought this about?"

"Oh, just time for some changes, I guess," I muttered, but my eyes fell to Kate, because her reaction was priceless.

"Edward, you remember my cousin, Rose," she introduced, but her eyes never left my body.

"Yes, of course. Good to see you again, Rose," I said with a wave.

"You, too."

My gaze fell back to Kate, and I realized that Bella was right. The woman was only interested in looks, because I suddenly felt like something to eat and she was the predator. I also realized that it wasn't Kate that I'd wanted; she merely represented her gender and how they treated me, but her humiliation still stung sharply.

"How's that no dating thing working out for you, Kate?" I asked, ignoring the sharp intakes of breath from the table and Kate's sudden red cheeks, because I was well aware that declaration had been only for me to turn me down.

"Um, fine," she squeaked. "Well, I mean...I met someone..."

"Mmhm, I'm sure you did," I chuckled darkly, shaking my head. "That must be some sort of record, right?" I asked, walking away, because I wanted to see Bella. I wanted her reaction.

I walked over to where Jamie and Bella were in deep conversation, and Bella turned to face me when I greeted her.

Her eyes raked over me, and I saw with some sort of satisfaction that her eyes darkened, before she said, "Hey, Edward."

"I'm gonna go see Em," Jamie muttered, kissing Bella's head, but his eyes gave me a pointed look. It was a warning.

Bella frowned, watching him walk away, but she finally landed her gaze back to me. "I've missed you this week, but I can see that you've been busy," she said wryly, gesturing to my clothes.

"Yeah, well...it was time for some changes," I stated with a shrug. "I still dressed the way I did in college."

She smiled, and my heart lurched, because that smile was genuine and only ours. "Yeah," she sighed, wrinkling her nose a bit, "but I never hated it." She giggled, and it was all I could do not to pull her into a hug and tell her just how much I'd missed her in the last week. She glanced past me, saying, "The band's about to start."

"Okay." I followed her back to the table, and I noticed that it quieted down once we took our seats. I could see that Kate was still embarrassed, that Emmett was watching me with narrowed eyes, and Jasper was studying me silently. I suddenly needed another beer, so I waved Jessica over. "Jessica, would you be so kind as to bring us a few more pitchers, please?" I asked, making sure to lower my voice, keeping it smooth, but my eyes locked onto hers.

"Um, sure, Edward," she breathed, her cheeks flushing pink, and I smirked as I watched that blush travel down her neck and across her chest. Curiosity made me wonder just how far that blush went. "M-Mugs for everyone?" she sputtered, barely giving the table a glance and tilting her head at me.

I grinned, reveling in the fact that her bottom lip suddenly got trapped in her teeth. "Yes, of course." She giggled and nodded, but before she could walk away, I pulled her hand. "And just what time to you get off tonight, Jess?" I whispered to her.

"I clock out at midnight," she whispered back, smiling sweetly and leaning to my ear. "What time I _get off_ is up to you..."

I chuckled as she walked away, but I turned back to a silently glaring table. "What?" I asked, almost snapping.

"Nothin', dude," Emmett murmured, shaking his head. "Careful with her...she's got a boyfriend. A big motherfucker, too."

"She doesn't act taken," I pointed out with a shrug of indifference.

"No, she doesn't," Bella snorted humorlessly, "but Tyler has no problem staking his claim..._with his fists._" She glared at me like I was disgusting, shaking her head. "If you think I'm kidding, just wait. He's always here thirty minutes before she's due to leave. Mom likes him to act as security when they lock up."

Jessica came back, set a few new full pitchers of beer down onto our table, along with clean mugs. She tucked a napkin into my hand, and I chuckled when I saw that it was her phone number and a note.

_Not tonight, but Friday. Call me._

I tucked the napkin into my jacket, giving her a wink as the band walked out onto the stage.

~oOo~

"You wanna let me in on the joke, Eddie?" Emmett growled, leaning his elbows onto the table, once all the girls had taken leave to head to the restroom.

"What joke?" I asked, pouring another beer, though I was pretty buzzed already. Though the more I drank, the easier it was to flirt with Jessica, not to mention the girls at the next table.

"This shit I'm lookin' at," he snapped, pointing to me. "'Cause this is not you, bud."

I looked around the table to Jasper, and then Jamie, neither of whom were saying a word. I shrugged, saying, "I don't know what you mean, Emmett."

"Oh, now, Em... Don't knock the clothes," Jamie chuckled, but it didn't reach his eyes. "I worked damn hard this week."

"Did you teach him this asinine behavior, too?" Jasper asked softly.

"I taught him how to flirt," Jamie answered, "but not to use it on some skanky waitress. I thought you had better taste than that."

Emmett snorted, pointing to me. "I'm telling you to leave Jess alone. Tyler is a big, jealous asshole. He'll break you in two, man."

"Jessica is a...test," I murmured, taking a sip of my beer to hide my nerves, because despite the fact that Jessica was reacting to my flirting ways, I was still unsure as to what to do.

"And Bella?" Jasper said, his voice coming across as a low warning.

"Cousin," Jamie stated, gripping my jacket and pulling me closer, "I didn't do this so you could hurt anyone. You asked me to make you look better, to help you gain more confidence. Do not forget who was there prior to this transformation. You've ignored Bella-boo all night. Or did you even notice that she'd been sitting next to you?" He stopped, looking to Emmett, and then Jasper. "I'm all for getting a little somethin'-somethin'. Hell, more power to you, but don't forget _who you are_. The Edward I know would never _test_ something on someone if it meant hurting them. You're leading the waitress on, and that shit'll backfire on you."

Emmett, though a great big jock at one point in our lives, was never stupid, so his eyes narrowed in on me. "Is this... Are you trying to make Bells jealous?" he asked, his mouth hanging open, and Jasper's head snapped up from his glare at the mug in front of him.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I sighed, my eyes slipping past him to the stage, where the band was getting ready for their second set.

"You don't have to do that, Edward," Jasper stated softly, shaking his head. "My sister loves you."

I snorted, rolling my eyes and shrugging, because she'd told me that we were just friends.

"Look at me!" he snapped, his anger surfacing and his hand balling up into a fist on the tabletop. It was a little unnerving, because Jasper never got pissed. "She does, man. I'm not sure when it happened, but something's changed. Maybe it's always been there, but you will _never_ get her attention this way. She broke up with Riley for this type of shit. He was an asshole and flirted with everything in a skirt. You don't want to do this, dude. I'm telling you."

"But she said..."

"Oh, I'm sure she did," he sighed, sitting back in his chair. "Tell me, Edward... Who's the one person you fear losing the most?"

I grimaced, looking at my hands wrapped around my mug and not the three men that were currently waiting for that answer – an answer that came really easily.

"Her."

"Right. Her." Jasper sat forward again. "She's the same way. Petrified of losing your friendship, though you're fucking that up just fine on your own, it seems."

The conversation came to a halt when the girls exited the bar and filed back onto the deck. I snorted, rolling my eyes as I watched as a man stopped Kate, touching her face and making her smile. By the time all the girls had made it back to the table, the alcohol, the new revelations that Jasper had revealed that I wasn't sure I believed, and my own internal battle caused something in me to snap. My internal filter obliterated. I was pissed and hurt, confused, and way too buzzed to think clearly.

My eyes fell on Kate, who was still silently flirting with the guy across the deck, and I chuckled. "Gee, Kate, when you said you met someone... Is that _every_ time you walk out your door?"

She didn't say anything, but the scraping of a chair across the deck floor caused me to turn my head the other way. Bella was standing up, gathering up her things.

"I'm going home. I'll see you guys at work tomorrow," she muttered, but she turned her gaze to me. "Walk me to my car?" she requested, and I nodded, standing up slowly.

Bella waved goodbye to everyone at the table, and then to her mom and Phil as we walked through the bar, but she said not one word to me until we reached her car. She spun in front of me, her eyes almost black.

"What is this?" she asked, gesturing up and down my body. "Is this all due to Kate? Do you want her that much that her rejection caused you to lose your mind, Edward? Because you sank to a disgusting level tonight, but you have no idea _why_ she turned you down."

I was shaking my head no before she even finished the series of rapid questions. "No, I just..." I started and then stopped, deciding to check out Jasper's theory. I stepped closer to her, and with every step I took, she backed up, finally finding herself trapped against her car. I loomed over her, bracing my arms on either side of her head. "I don't want Kate," I whispered, shaking my head again. "What's the matter, Bell? You don't like the way I look? Jamie will be disappointed... He worked very hard."

I felt her whole body shiver, whether by my close proximity or what I'd said.

"You look fine, Edward," she said, her voice barely there, but she wouldn't meet my eyes. "You want new clothes, a new look...that's great. But this isn't you."

I hummed in response, leaning in and tracing my nose across her forehead, down her cheek, and nuzzled her nose with mine. "You always smell so good," I murmured, closing my eyes, because suddenly, I realized that Jessica, Kate...they didn't matter. I wasn't even comfortable with them, and they definitely couldn't compare to how beautiful the girl in front of me was. "Jasper tells me you're lying to me, Bell. That this best friend thing is bullshit."

She gasped, her eyes locking with mine and her hands pushing against my chest, but I didn't move. In fact, I leaned in closer, letting a touch of my weight press in on her against her car.

"It's not bullshit," she snapped, glaring at me. "But I'm not sure of anything right now, because the person I thought I knew isn't the one in front of me."

The music started up on the deck again, and it drifted out over the building and through the speakers mounted outside. I closed my eyes again as _Just a Kiss_ by Lady Antebellum started to play. It seemed to express everything I needed and wanted in one single moment.

_Lying here with you slow close to me,_

_It's hard to fight these feelings when it feels so hard to breathe._

_Caught up in this moment,_

_Caught up in your smile._

"I'm still me, Bell," I breathed, and the urge to kiss her was almost overwhelming. I found myself dragging my tongue along my bottom lip.

"No," she stated firmly, shaking her head and pushing against my chest again. "No, you're not. The Edward I knew would have never said the things you've said tonight."

_I've never opened up to anyone,_

_so hard to hold back when I'm holding you in my arms._

_We don't need to rush this,_

_let's just take it slow._

_Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight,_

_just a touch of the fire burning so bright._

_I don't wanna mess this thing up._

_I don't wanna push too far._

_Just a shot in the dark that you just might,_

_be the one I've been waiting for my whole life._

_So, baby, I'm all right,_

_With just a kiss good night._

God, I could feel everything about her – her pounding heartbeat, her breasts pressed against me, her hands twitching against my chest, the heat of her searing the front of my body – just _everything_. My hands fisted against the car door in order not to grab her, kiss her, because she was so close and there was this pull to her that wasn't there before. Or maybe it had been there all along and I'd been reading it wrong all these years, because despite how badly she was shaking, how hard she was trying not to look my way, her eyes still fell to my mouth for one brief second.

"I have to go," she whispered, looking away from me again. Her lips hovered so close to mine that not only could I taste her breath, but I could feel the vibration of her voice. "Edward, you need to figure out what you really want. You want a new wardrobe, and you got one. You do look...amazing, but I don't think I like this." She reached up and tapped the center of my forehead. "And I've never had a problem with any of it before...well, this moment right here." Tears welled up in her eyes and spilled over. "Jasper's right. I wanted...more with you. But now I'm not sure of anything, because you're not...you. I'm not even sure I can be friends with someone like this," she stated, and I finally let her push me away.

The words she said cut sharply – sharper than anything Kate could've ever said or done, because my whole world just opened up her car door to throw her things into the passenger side seat. She'd been my crutch, my partner in crime, and my right hand for so long that I wasn't sure I could live without her. I'd remain friends only for the rest of our lives, if it only stopped her from leaving.

"But you're the Sam to my Frodo," I argued softly, hoping to lighten up the situation, because I was desperate for her not to leave, and we'd been calling each other that for years.

"Not anymore," she sighed, her back to me as she stepped one foot in the door. "I want what Arwen had." She shrugged her shoulders, got in her car, and cranked up the engine.

"Bella, wait," I said, panicking and holding the door before she could slam it, but she spoke before I did.

"You want to know why I haven't dated in over a year, Edward?" she asked suddenly, locking her tear-filled eyes with me. "Because I realized...just recently, actually...that I had everything I needed in you. Well, almost everything," she muttered the last part. "Go enjoy this newfound...confidence you've seemed to have dug up. I just hope it works out for you." She put her car in reverse and looked up at me with an almost painful expression. "Maybe you shouldn't drive home. Make Jamie do it." She sighed, sounding almost defeated. "I'll see you at work tomorrow."

With that said, she pulled the door out of my grip and slammed it, backing quickly out of her parking space. She was only taillights in the distance within a matter of seconds.

"Damn it," I sighed, and it was all I could do to not follow her, but I had drunk too much, and no matter how I'd acted, Bella still made sure to take care of me.

"Hey, Edward," I heard behind me, and I spun to see Jessica outside, smoking a cigarette.

"Hey," I sighed, shoving my hands into my jacket pockets, and just looking at her, I knew I'd fucked up with her. I'd led her on with no intention of following through.

"You know..." she purred, walking toward me. "I get a thirty minute break."

"And you have a boyfriend," I pointed out, raising an eyebrow at her.

"What he doesn't know..."

"Yeah, but _I_ know," I stated, and I left her where she stood to go back inside. Maybe it was for the best to do it that way, because my heart had just driven away, and I had no idea what I was going to do about it.

**A/N... I really do love this Bella. She has more control than I would. LOL Bear with our boy. He's just trying to find..._something_...whether it be himself or the something that's right in front of his face. And God, I love Jamie! ;)**

**Next up...Bella again. And I really think you'll like that chapter. :) And like I said, I'll still post on Sunday, so you won't have long to rant about Edward's misbehavior. **

**I need to thank JenRar for beta'ing this and sending me very angry emails about my Nerdward. LOL To GooberLou, who was rather violent (no shock there! LOL) towards my confused boy, and to MedusaInNY, both pre-read this for me. **

**Oh, I'm sure you have plenty to say, so get on with it. :) I'm hiding behind my rather large German Shepherd, so go for it! :D See you Sunday. Until then... Later. **


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N... Dear Lord! I've never seen you guys so split on opinions since I've been writing fics! Some of you wanted to smack Edward, and some of you, Bella. Some of you were proud of her, but the rest of you kinda saw it as Edward trying out new wings. There were even one or two of you that were mad at the both of them. It was all over the place, really. There were a rare few of you that got it, saw it, and _nailed_ it! I'm very proud. But mainly...you just want them both to open their eyes.**

**Now...let's see what happens next... It's Bella's turn, so we'll see what happened after that almost kiss and her finally letting Edward know how she felt.**

CHAPTER 4

**BELLA**

"_What's the matter, Bell? You don't like the way I look?"_

"_I'm still me, Bell..."_

"_You always smell so good..."_

I closed my eyes, running a shaky hand through my hair and letting out a long, deep breath, because it had taken everything I'd had not to kiss him three nights ago. And if I thought he looked good all casual in a leather jacket, low jeans, and a tight t-shirt, then _nothing_ had prepared me for work the next morning, when he walked in wearing a gorgeous tailored suit in navy blue.

He'd looked like power and confidence, like something straight off a damn runway. And it wasn't just the first day; he'd looked amazing every day this week. The suits were crisp and sharp, highlighting his broad shoulders – that he didn't think he had. They narrowed at the waist, and the silk ties were always the perfect colors to make his eyes absolutely stunning. Though they barely glanced my way.

The first day, he hadn't spoke, but he'd had a ton of computer work to do, so I'd left him alone, except that I was still pissed at him, so I'd tended to slam shit around most of the day – staplers, keyboard keys, phone receivers, desk drawers, and the poor, poor copy machine. Mr. Thomas had been happy with most of the ideas that Edward had presented to him, but he'd requested a few extra changes, and since Edward had been gone the last week, he was running behind on most of the revisions.

By Wednesday, he'd said no more than a handful of words to me, and that was including before shutting himself up in his office, going out for lunch, and leaving for the day. And today was no different; the silence was deafening. He wouldn't even ask for anything; he'd just get it himself.

I wanted to walk into his office and force him to talk to me, to have this out, but I'd said all I'd needed to at Phil's that night. The Edward I'd first met would never have been rude to Kate, no matter how badly he'd wanted to. Confidence was one thing, but being mean was another. What he didn't know was _why_ she'd rejected him. She might not have done it in the right way, but she'd done it because she assumed there was something between me and Edward. No matter all her faults, I had to respect her at least for that.

Emmett's office door opened, and he came out wearing a big smile. "Yo, Bells. Have you got that..."

"Here," I said, not even looking up from my computer and blindly reaching for the file I'd pulled for him.

He chuckled, taking it from me and turning back to his doorway.

"Oh, Em," I called, before he could disappear back into his office. "I'm going to be leaving early tomorrow night. My mom and Phil need help at the bar, and they need someone on short notice. I guess Jessica has the flu or something, and it's supposed to be busy...some band is playing on the deck."

"Sweet! It'll be like old times, like when we were in school. Drinks on you, yeah?" He beamed, rubbing his hands together.

"You'd better tip, asshole," I laughed, the first real laugh all week. "You never tipped when we were in school!"

"Aw, Bells, you know we'll take care of you," he soothed, walking over and kissing the top of my head. "Leave whenever you need tomorrow. Okay?"

"Fine," I said, unable to fight my smile.

The door to Edward's office swung open, and he stalked out, muttering, "Goin' to lunch."

"'Kay," Emmett and I both said, watching him walk out the glass doors, where he ran into my brother.

Edward nodded, and then shook his head, only to wave Jasper off and continue out the building. The sight of my big brother brought back the betrayal and the anger I'd felt at hearing that he'd spilled everything I'd talked to him about to Edward. I'd been too upset to talk to him Monday night, but Jasper had been working a job the whole week, so I hadn't seen him. So the very second he was inside the office, I was crooking my finger at him.

"Get your ass over here," I said through gritted teeth. "Of all the secrets I've kept for you in our lives, you just had to go and open your big, fat mouth," I told him. "I have half a mind to tell Mom how you _really_ got poison ivy on your ass at summer camp! I'm sure she'd find it fascinating that it wasn't because you put your sleeping bag in the wrong spot, but that Amber O'Connell met you down by the lake. Where was her poison ivy? Her knees?"

"What? Wait!" he backpedaled, holding up his hands, his eyes wide with shock and fear, because he knew I'd do it.

"Three fucking days, Jasper!" I said, holding up three fingers and standing up from behind my desk. "My best friend hasn't spoken more than a dozen words to me in three damn days! Have you lost your mind? How could you? This was exactly what I was afraid of, because he can't even look me in the eye. He didn't need to know, J." I fought the sob that came out on the last word, but I failed miserably.

A big, warm arm wrapped around me, and I couldn't help but lean into Emmett. I didn't know if he was stopping me from killing my brother or comforting me, but I took it as the latter.

"He needed to know, Bells," Emmett whispered in my ear. "He wasn't himself that night. He was drunk on beer and...whatever bullshit Jamie had fed him. Though Jamie let him have it, too."

I huffed an incredulous laugh, shaking my head in denial. "Had my glasses wearing, sweet friend walked into the bar...maybe, you could've said something, but he didn't. That was someone I didn't know, and he totally was unrecognizable."

"If it makes you feel any better, B, he was pretty fucking sobered up when he came back inside," Jasper said, sitting down in the chair in front of me and taking my hands. "He apologized to Kate and ignored Jessica. Whatever you said to him in the parking lot..."

"Slowed his roll," Emmett finished with a chuckle. "He was damn quiet when he came back, and he didn't stay for long. He had Jamie drive him home."

"Whatever," I sighed, because that didn't change the fact that my best friend wasn't talking to me. It also didn't help that even if all of it was true, I missed Edward with everything I had. It wasn't just our stupid conversations, our ease around each other, but that I just _missed_ him. I missed his smile, his laugh, his sweet blush. I missed debating the dumbest shit with him, and the perfect way we worked together. And I completely missed his hanging out at my apartment. I missed how he would smile and kiss my head when I would amuse him, how he smelled like clean soap and shampoo in the mornings, and how we'd fight over pizza toppings when ordering delivery.

I still wasn't sure whether I shouldn't have kissed him Monday night. It might've been my only opportunity, and I'd fucking blown it. Just the mere thought of my lips on his had my stomach flip-flopping.

"I knew this would happen. Maybe this was why I never allowed this feeling out, because I knew it would ruin a really good thing," I mumbled into Emmett's chest. "I would rather have kept my mouth shut than to lose my best friend."

Jasper gazed up at me, guilt and sympathy all over his face. "Come on. Let me buy you lunch, B," he said, standing up in front of me. "I'm sorry I said anything, but I could see how hurt you were."

"It was _my_ problem," I stated. "You had _no_ right..."

"Maybe," Emmett chimed in, giving my shoulder a squeeze, "but you two clearly don't see what everyone else does."

"Clearly," I sneered, because at that moment, I didn't see anything but Edward's closed office door.

"Go to lunch," Emmett sighed, passing me over to Jasper. "I'll man the office. I've got some calls to make anyway."

Jasper helped me into my jacket, held every door for me, and walked with me across the street to the cafe. "Find a table, B. I'll order for us. I know what you eat," he said, and I nodded, making my way to an empty corner table.

I hadn't been all that hungry before, but my appetite complete left me when I caught sight of the counter. Standing tall and handsome in his black dress pants, the sleeves rolled up to his elbows on his gray dress shirt, and his loosened shiny gray tie, was Edward at the cash register. The little redhead behind the counter was smiling up at him, taking his credit card and sliding his bag of food toward him. The Edward I'd first met would have blushed, but ignored her, because she would have made him nervous, but the one standing in front her now ran a hand through his hair, sending it into an unbelievably attractive disarray, laughed once, and smiled a sexy, crooked smile.

My eyes couldn't stray from the sight, even when her fingers grazed across his when she handed him a pen to sign with, even when she smiled flirtatiously, and even when she slipped him another piece of paper, in which he pocketed unceremoniously. I snorted when I realized that it had to have been her phone number. When the transaction was all said and done, he took his bag and turned away, but his gaze found me immediately. His face was unreadable as we locked eyes for a moment, but instead of saying anything or joining me like he once would have, he left the cafe and stalked back across the street to our office.

"He threw it away," I heard beside me as Jasper set our tray down. "I watched him. He threw her number away."

I nodded and shrugged, not saying anything for a minute, and pulled my food to me. "It's okay, Jasper. He has options now."

~oOo~

"Phil, I'm gonna need more ice," I called, sticking my head through the side door. "And I think the Bud on tap is about to run out."

"Got it, kiddo," he grunted from inside the walk-in fridge.

"And you might want to get Jasper behind the bar...there's a guy getting a little...trashed," I told him, rolling my eyes. "He's been here since five o'clock."

"Can you handle it for now? He's manning the deck," he told me.

"Yeah, sure. I'm fine. Emmett's right there if I need anything," I said with a nod, jerking my thumb behind me, because there was a large table in the center of the bar that had been taken over by my friends.

Kate, Rose, Alice, Emmett, Jamie, and even Edward were all watching a hockey game on the large flat screen, though I knew they were there for me and Jasper. The fact that Edward had bothered to show up shocked me, until I realized that Emmett had called Jamie, who in turn had forced Edward along. However, he said very little to anyone, but I felt his eyes on me almost at all times. They were filling themselves up on junky, deep fried bar food, pitcher after pitcher of beer, and pretzels.

My mom was splitting herself between helping Phil in the kitchen and helping Jasper outside, and I had the main bar.

"Hey, B," Jasper rushed up, sporting a Phil's Sports Bar baseball cap on. "I need three Heinekens in the bottle and a pitcher of Bud."

"'Kay," I muttered, pouring my own drinks for the table in the corner. I pulled out his three bottles of beer, popped off the tops, and slid them across the bar. "Here," I said, sliding his pitcher to him and gathering up the mugs for my table.

"Thanks," he called, leaving back out the deck door.

We were so busy that the night had become a series of faces and orders. The table full of fun loving college boys in the corner flirted harmlessly with me as they drained pitchers of beer and did shots of Jeager. The guy at the bar that was truly past his limit was trying his damnedest to get my attention, but the most he got was his order filled, though I did force him to finally eat something. Beers and food to my friends. Shots to the ladies in the corner for a girls' night out. Hot wings for the large table out on the deck for my mother.

Things slowed a bit once the band started playing on the deck. The girls and Emmett went outside to watch them, leaving Edward and Jamie inside at the table.

I took a glance around the bar, and everyone seemed to be okay for the moment, so I poured two beers to take to Edward and Jamie. "Here, guys," I sighed, leaning next to Jamie.

"Thanks," Edward murmured, but at least he was making eye contact with me.

"Sit, Bella-boo," Jamie chuckled, pulling out a chair, "before you fall down."

"I'd better not," I giggled. "If I stop, there may be no getting back up. I've been up since six o'clock this morning, and I'm nowhere close to being done."

Both boys smiled, and it looked good on Edward for the first time in a week, but it was Jamie that spoke.

"At least you have all this eye candy to play with," he purred, giving the room a good glance around, a hand placed dramatically on his chest.

I grinned, looking around with him. "I suppose, though I'm not sure any of it is for...you, my friend," I teased him, ruffling his short blond hair when he frowned and pouted. "Well, the boys in the corner go to UT. The dark one is pre-law, the very tan one is considering psychology, and the last one is graduating next year for computer aided drafting. Edward, you'd be proud," I said with a laugh, which gave me another long overdue smile from him and an intrigued glance toward the table that I was talking about.

"Yes, but Mr. Pre-Law is eying you like you're his next meal," Jamie laughed, raising his eyebrows up and down.

"He's harmless. Has a girlfriend back home in New Orleans," I told him. "Of all the tables, they've been really polite."

"What about the couple in the corner?" he asked, jerking his chin.

"Now, _they_ might be interested in you, but you'd have to be with her, too," I stated with a shrug, which caused Jamie to gag and a laugh to bark out of Edward.

"Hey, gorgeous?" the dark haired boy from the college table called me, and I found it hard to answer him when Edward's face spun to glare at them, his face dark and angry. "Can we get one more round, honey?"

"Sure, be right there," I told him.

"Hmm, that is one hot ass table," Jamie muttered, shaking his head.

I leaned down, bracing my hands next to him and jerking my chin in the opposite direction to the table of ladies. "Not according to the girls in the corner. They say _this_ table is the hot one," I whispered with a grin. "And... See the table of four along the side?" I asked them both, and they nodded. "Heard those two girls in the bathroom. They say the same thing."

Jamie grinned, eying Edward's suddenly uncomfortable reaction to that bit of news, because his cheeks turned a little pink. "Yeah, but what's your opinion on the matter, Bella-boo?"

I giggled, kissed Jamie's cheek, and stood up straight. "I'm afraid I have to side with the majority, as well. This is the hottest table," I said, pointing a finger to the table top.

"Thank you, you sweet, gorgeous thing," Jamie stated haughtily, popping the collar of his jacket, and then shoved his cousin. "Here that, Eddie? The sexiest thing in here thinks we're hot."

"Don't call me Eddie," Edward snapped, but even as I turned away to walk behind the bar to fill my college boys up another pitcher, I could hear my friend's smile in his voice.

"Here, boys," I said, setting down the beer.

"So... which one, gorgeous?" the dark haired college boy asked with a false pout, giving Jamie and Edward a side glance.

"Which one... what?" I asked with a laugh, knowing what they were asking.

"You kissed the one, but the other one can't keep his eyes off of you. Which one keeps bringing you back to that table?" he asked with a chuckle and a wink.

"Both." I grinned at the table's groans. "I've known them for years."

"Don't say just friends, because that's not what I see when the one is shooting daggers my way just for talking to you," the future psychologist said with a laugh.

"The blond is gay," I said with a smirk, not truly answering their question. "And the other one... Well, he's not sure of what he wants."

"Oh, he knows," Pre-Law laughed, his head falling back. "He definitely knows what he wants."

"Okay, boys," I sighed, rolling my eyes. "Can I get you anything else? I've got other people besides the future of capitalism to deal with."

They laughed, but the CAD student grinned, saying, "No, we're good. Thanks."

I cleaned a few tables, cashed out the table of two couples, and darted back behind the bar to fill another order for the ladies' night out table. I dropped off two beers, two margaritas, and two cosmos to the women, once again ending up behind the bar. I was wiping the top down, listening to the music coming in from outside, when the man on the stool called me.

"Darlin', let me get another," he slurred, setting his beer mug down.

I grimaced with my back to him, pulling his credit card to check his name, and then turned back to him. "George, I think you're done," I told him, bracing my arms on the bar. "What do you say I call someone for you? Or a cab? Hmm?"

"No, no... I'm fine," he argued, shaking his head. "One more, darlin', please?"

Against my better judgment, I poured him one more, setting it down in front of him. "Last one, okay? And then you're getting a ride home."

"Maybe you could take me home," he muttered, tilting his head at me.

"No, honey. I don't think so. I have to work," I chuckled, pushing away from the bar, but before I could step away, a strong, firm hand wrapped around my wrist, yanking me back so that my ribs collided with the unforgiving wooden bar top. "Ow, shit," I hissed.

"What's the matter? I'm not good enough for you?" he sneered, suddenly on his feet and looming over me.

"Well, no, George, but I'm thinking that ring on your finger means someone might give two shits where you are," I grunted, trying to wrench my wrist free of his grasp, but he only held on tighter. "Let me go."

"All you bitches are alike. You tease, but never fucking follow through," he growled in my face, his breath heavy with the stench of nachos and beer.

"She _said_ let go," I heard behind the big guy.

George barely looked over his shoulder to see Edward standing there, with Jamie as backup. Even my college boys had stood up from their table.

George squeezed harder on my wrist, but he didn't let go. He turned to face Edward, saying, "The bitch owes me, kid. She's been teasing me all night in those tight ass jeans."

I'd never seen Edward as mad as he was in that single moment. His eyes were black, his sharp jaw flexed, and his arms seemed to roll with every clench of his fists.

"Let her go," he said again, his voice deep, but the warning was deadly.

"Mind your business, kid," George scoffed, starting to turn back to me, which caused my ribs to hit the bar top again.

"She is my business," Edward snapped, and his fist flew, connecting with the man's face.

George's hand released my arm, but he swung on Edward, the sound of fist hitting flesh snapping loudly through the bar. And George wasn't finished. He tackled Edward onto the top of the closest table, causing it to collapse to the floor.

I slipped, falling to the floor behind the bar, but found strong hands helping me up.

"Bella-boo, you okay?" Jamie asked, lifting me up to the bar and setting me down.

We both turned when the sound of fists flying and loud grunted curse words met our ears. My college boys were all manhandling George, pinning him to the broken table top. Emmett and Jasper were holding back an absolute out of control Edward, who seemed to be fighting to get back to the drunken man. Shirts were torn, noses and cuts above eyes were bleeding, and George had seemed to have given up, but that didn't stop Edward.

"He had no right!" Edward yelled, still struggling in Emmett and my brother's strong arms, and he was beautiful and scary, heroic and hurt – all at the same time. My whole being ached to run to him.

"Jasper, get him out of here," Phil ordered, the phone to his ear, pointing to the deck doors.

"Boys, you can let him up," my mother soothed, patting Pre-Law on his shoulder. "I think he's passed out."

The three boys stood up, leaving the large, limp man lying on the broken table. I shook my head when George let out a long, low groan.

"Boo, answer me," Jamie begged, lifting my wrist where perfect fingerprints were glaring angry and red.

"I'm fine," I sighed, shaking my head. "He caught me off guard," I admitted, my eyes unable to break away from Edward being forced outside.

"Let me see," my mom whispered, stepping up in front of me. She lifted my wrist, made me wriggle my fingers, and then asked, "Where else?"

"I'm fine... I need to check on..."

"Isabella Marie... Where else?" she commanded, and I lifted the side of my shirt so she could look at the bruise that was already forming from where I'd hit the bar. "Does it hurt to breathe?" she asked, and I shook my head no. "Do they feel broken?"

"No, Mom. I'm _fine_," I whined like the child she was making me feel like, shaking my head again. "Please, let me go. I need to see Edward."

She studied my face, my wrist, and gave my ribs one last gentle touch, before she pushed away from the bar. She poured a big cup of coffee, bagged up some ice out of the bin, and handed both to me.

"Our sweet boy will feel all of this shit pretty damn soon, so take him this," she told me, and stepped back so that Jamie could set me gently on my feet. "He'll have a black eye tomorrow and one helluva a hangover."

I nodded, tears welling up in my eyes at the love I heard in my mother's voice concerning Edward. "I know," I said, hoping he wasn't too badly hurt.

I stepped out the deck doors, my eyes scanning for my brother and Emmett, but they weren't in any of the chairs. The band was packing up, and faintly in the distance, I could hear the siren of a police car getting closer. My head spun when I heard Emmett's booming voice coming up from the beach.

"You're gonna sit your ass here, Eddie. Period. At least until you calm the hell down," he yelled, and I could see three shadows, two of which were forcing the third down into the sand.

"He hurt her, Em. I have to check on her," Edward argued belligerently, but I could hear my old friend's worried tone in there. Gone was the pompous guy that had been around the last few days.

"Edward, I'm fine," I sighed, jerking my chin to my brother and Emmett to tell them to leave us, which they did, giving my shoulder a squeeze on the way by. I stood in front of Edward, and he was resting his elbows on his knees, his hands buried in his hair. I knelt in front of him. "Let me see, sweetie," I whispered, tilting his head up and wincing at the cut above his eye. "Take this. You're gonna need to sober up a bit in order to talk to the cops," I told him.

His hands wrapped around the mug, but he stayed quiet as I reached down to take off the top shirt I was wearing. I shuffled closer, using the shirt to dab gently at the blood on his face. It had almost stopped, so I set it down and lightly pressed the bag of ice to what was going to be a pretty bad shiner.

"What were you thinking?" I asked him, not really expecting an answer, but I got one anyway.

"He shouldn't have touched you," Edward mumbled, looking away from me and out over the black water.

"Oh, so you are speaking to me," I snorted, touching his hand to make him drink the coffee.

Dark green eyes snapped to mine, and they were filled with remorse. "I'm sorry," he whispered. "I've been..."

"Don't," I stated firmly, shaking my head. "This was something you felt you needed to do." I watched as his gaze left mine again, falling to the coffee mug, and he pulled it up for a sip. "He was twice your size and drunk, Edward. He could have really hurt you."

"Don't care," he said with a shrug, taking another sip. "Are you okay?" he asked, eying my wrist, but he made no move to touch me.

I huffed a humorless laugh, tilting my head at him. "On what level?" I countered, shuffling closer between his legs so that I could sit back on my heels and still continue to ice his eye. "I watched my best friend turn into Mr. Hyde this week, he stopped speaking to me, and then he comes to my rescue like a knight on a white steed. I could give two shits about the drunken asshole inside the bar, about the bruises on my wrist and ribs, or about how busy it must be in there right about now. Drink," I ordered, looking down at the beach sand, but I kept the ice on his face. "Perhaps I'm just a bit confused."

"About what?" he asked, his voice barely there.

I was quiet for a moment, my heart pounding, because I was going to take Jasper's advice. I was going to lay it all out on the line. I just couldn't fight it anymore. Once I'd realized that what I felt for Edward went far beyond friendship, I just couldn't hold it in, especially after not speaking to him for a week. If our friendship was over, then so be it, because we'd never lied to each other before, and I'd always been the outspoken one between the two of us.

"You." The word hung there for a second or two before I continued, because Edward became really, really still. "I told you last week that you don't see yourself the way that I do. You don't," I reiterated, when he opened his mouth to speak. "Please let me say this. You got so upset at my apartment, and you left before I could finish what I was saying. Yeah, you're my best friend, Edward, but...there's more to it. I'm happy with you, but I want more from you." I shrugged, pulling the ice away from his eye and checking it, only to place it gently back. "You seemed to have gotten it into your head that in order to get somewhere, you've got to act like a jerk. Not everyone is Emmett. Not everyone is attracted to crass and loud and sometimes rude," I told him, smiling when he smirked up at me. "You are a gentleman. Gentle _man_, sweetie. I liked you that way. You want to look different, then go ahead, because you do look really good, but I happen to like the sweet guy that I first met." I shrugged one shoulder again, realizing that was probably why I called him sweetie to begin with. "I've watched you bark orders on the phone, flirt relentlessly with strangers, say the most awful things to Kate, dumb your brilliant intelligence down, and I'm not even sure I want to know how many phone numbers you've been given this week. Confidence is one thing, but don't be an asshole. It makes you no better than George in there," I stated, pointing behind him toward the bar.

I let out a long, nervous breath, watching my own hands brush beach sand off of my jeans. "You've got options, sweetie, but I'm not sure you know what you want."

"Bell, I..."

I placed my fingers on his lips to stop him, because I wasn't finished. "I always thought that what I felt for you was because we were so close, but I've just recently realized that it was something I'd never felt before. And I just never recognized it, because it just was always there," I told him, leaning closer and pulling the bag of ice away. "I'm going to give you one more option, something that's been in front of you the whole time, and I know once I do this, our friendship is over," I said, my eyes welling up with tears at that last statement, but I set the bag of ice aside and stood up on my knees.

Careful of his black eye, I cupped his face, bringing his lips to mine. Edward gasped against my mouth, freezing for just a moment, but I didn't stop. I took his top lip, then his bottom, lightly grazing my tongue across it, and that was when he reacted. Somewhere in the back of my mind, I heard the coffee mug shatter against a rock, but the deep, sultry moan that erupted from him was the only thing my mind could focus on, especially when it was accompanied by hands on my waist and face.

Pulling me closer and slipping his hand into my hair, Edward turned my head. Our tongues met for the first time ever, and an explosion of feelings, emotions, and want swirled through me. He tasted like coffee, beer, and just something I had to have more of, because it felt so damn right to be kissing him. I'd never wanted anything more than I wanted Edward in that one single kiss. I'd been with guys prior to this, but nothing compared to the strength of the pull I was experiencing.

Edward fell back onto the beach sand, pulling me on top of him, but our kiss didn't break. In fact, it only deepened.

"God, Bella," he breathed against my lips as I braced my hands on either side of his head, while his own explored my back, my exposed skin just above my jeans, and finally, my ass.

"Yeah," I replied. It took all I had not to roll my hips over something that was stirring between us, and it was then that I knew I had to stop, because it was neither the time, nor the place for that. I pulled back, pressing my forehead to his and licking my lips. "Consider this my notice of resignation from Cullen and Masen," I panted, squeezing my eyes closed to fight my tears. "And thank you for rescuing me, Edward."

I extricated myself from his arms and stood up. I left him there on the beach, because he needed to decide what he really wanted, and any decision he made at that very moment would be alcohol and kiss induced. But I'd meant what I said; if he didn't feel the same as I did, there was no way I could work with him again, and our friendship would never be the same.

"Bella, wait," he called. I stopped, not bothering to turn around, but he ran up behind me, his lips pressing to the back of my head. "You can't quit. And you can't just...do that and leave."

"I have to, Edward," I sighed, turning to face him, and he immediately wrapped his arms around my waist to pull me closer. "See... That kiss comes with a price. Dress the way you want, but I need the real you. The one that will sit and eat junk food on my couch as we watch movies over and over. The one that finishes my sentences. Not this guy I've seen this past week. There's nothing wrong with being polite, kind, and smart. It's a heady combination on you, actually, but I can't be with this other side of you, so you've got some thinking to do."

"Bell, I'm sorry," he whispered, shaking his head. "You're right...about all of it, and I feel the same."

I smiled sadly, because I'd seen what the light of day changed about drunken statements. I turned when we were called from the deck. "If you feel the same by time you're sober, then come to me. I'll wait, sweetie."

"Edward, Bells," Jasper called from the deck steps. "The police need your statements."

"I missed you this week. My mind won't change by morning," Edward stated softly, but he looked down at his feet.

"You don't know that, Edward," I told him, kissing his cheek and stepping out of his embrace. "And it's okay if it does, because all I want is for you to find whatever it is that you've been searching for."

I walked up the steps, swiping the back of my hand to stop the tears from falling, but it didn't work.

"Miss Swan?" a policeman asked from beside my brother. "I'm Officer Yost. I need to ask you a few questions and take some pictures of your injuries," he said, and I nodded, letting him guide me inside.

**A/N... Before you guys fly into a rage, take a second... Yeah, she's leaving him right there, but he's been drinking all night long. Yes, she gave him one more option, but you have to see her side, because he hasn't exactly been Chatty Kathy the past week, so she has no idea what he's been up to, only what she's observed. Mm'kay? She's seen him take girls' phone numbers, ignore her all week, bark orders on the phone, and basically shut himself off. BUT...he can't keep his eyes off her all night long and then he saves her at the end of the day, so yeah, she's totally confused.**

**Edward, on the other hand, had "slowed his roll," according to the boys, once he came back from having his ass handed to him by Bella. He apologized to Kate and ignored Jessica for the rest of that drunken night. In fact, he went home early, so you guys that were worried...you can rest easy that he didn't do anything stupid, and he found his manners again. **

**Coming up is Edward's POV again, though this time, it'll be a bit different. I think you'll see all the dots connect by the end of the next chapter. It really does explain SO MUCH about their relationship.**

**I need to thank JenRar for beta'ing this for me, who said she was crying right along with Bella at the end of this chapter. To GooberLou, who swoons over any sort of knight rescuing the damsel situation...ALWAYS! LOL And to MedusaInNY, who I hope is feeling better and was truly a trusted opinion on this story.**

**Now, it's been suggested to me that I post every other day until the end of the story. No. But I will do this... Chapter 5 will post Wednesday...Chapter 6 on Friday...and the epilogue will post on Sunday. Does that work for you guys? I hope so. If you realize just how short this story is, then you can see that the drama isn't going to last much longer. ;) If that works for you, then review...and tell me more of your _colorful_ opinions. LOL They were fascinating to read! Love to you all... until Wed...Later. :)**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N... Hello, my friends, so it seems most of you are proud of our Bella, because she had the strength to lay it all out there and walk away to give Edward time to think. There are a few of you that are frustrated with the both of them. I TOLD you this would happen. **

**There seems to be an uprising over why they can't be best friends and lovers. THEY CAN, but when one thinks the other is still looking around, then by telling them everything, caution is thrown to the wind. Bella's "our friendship is over" statement merely means that she's half expecting Edward not to show the next day. And if that happens, then yeah...that friendship will _never be the same_. Please remember that Edward had been silent up until the jerk in the bar.**

**However, the need to know what's been going through our guy's mind is huge, so I'll let you get to it... but how about some flashbacks first? ;)**

CHAPTER 5

**EDWARD**

_~oOo~_

"_You Eddie __Masen?" a giant__ guy asked, rumbling into the room with what looked like a dozen duffel bags hanging from his huge shoulders._

"_Edward," I corrected, pushing my glasses up as I set my laptop up on my desk. "You must be Emmett Cullen."_

"_Yup!" He grinned__ as he fell onto his bed and __dropped__ bags everywhere, and I couldn't help but smile back, because he seemed honestly friendly and easy going. "Looks like we're roomies, Edward."_

"_Looks like," I chuckled, going back to my printer cable that had somehow gotten tangled in the move._

"_Dude, did you see the girls across the hallway?" he asked in a dramatic whisper, sitting up and raising his eyebrows up and down. "There's a blonde and a brunette. They're fucking hot, man."_

_I shook my head, finally standing up straight and pushing my glasses up again. "No, I didn't," I __admitted. I__ was nervous enough being so far from home. Adding girls into the mix wouldn't help with that any._

"_Here, check this out," he chuckled as he rummaged through his bags for a moment, hopping up from the bed and yanking open our door. He knocked on the door right across from us, and the most gorgeous brunette tugged it open. "Hey, beautiful," Emmett sang with a grin. "My roomie and I were just about to celebrate our first day of freedom. Care to join us?"_

_The brunette eyed him warily, but was shoved aside by a very pretty blonde, who blurted out, "Hell, yes! You're the new running back, Emmett Cullen."_

"_That I am, gorgeous," Emmett laughed, walking them both across the hall._

_Suddenly, my room was two people fuller, but they smelled infinitely better than Emmett, who kinda smelled like old gym shorts. Well, it smelled better until Emmett lit the __joint he'd__ brought out._

"_Want some?" he offered, holding the damn thing up._

"_Hell, no," the brunette stated, rolling her eyes. "I'm rather fond of my brain cells, thank you very much."_

"_No, I'm okay," I sighed, waving him and the blonde off as they sat on his bed._

"_Bella Swan," the brunette stated, holding out her __hand. "That's__ Lauren Mallory," she added, and the girl waved from Emmett's bed._

"_Edward Masen," I __answered after shaking her hand, unable__ to fight the smile that crept up my face, because she happily plopped herself down onto my bed next to me, giving my things a long look._

"_Where you from, Edward?" she asked, giving me a glance before thumbing through my movies._

"_Chicago. You?"_

"_Washington, originally__, but my mom and step-dad live here now," she murmured, glancing up at me. "Like sci-fi movies?"_

"_Um, yeah," I groaned, feeling the blush creep up my face, because I'd been made fun of back home for it._

"_Sweet," she chuckled, clapping her hands. "Now I have someone to watch them with. Not a lot of girls like them. What's your favorite?"_

_I grinned, because she immediately put me at ease. She didn't seem to pay attention to the giggling and the flirting across the room, and she didn't seem to care what people thought of her. She was stunning, with __sparkling, deep__ brown eyes, a beaming smile that seemed to change everything about her, and a laugh that was contagious. It felt good to meet someone that didn't make me nervous right off the bat, because even Emmett hadn't done that._

"Lord of the Rings_," I stated firmly, because I'd read the book years before the movies were even a concept._

"_Me, too!" she squeaked, her mouth hanging open in the most adorable manner. "Peter Jackson did the best job! They were really close to the books."_

"_He did," I laughed, reaching into the box and pulled out the special edition DVDs that I guarded with my life._

_She gave Emmett and the blonde a side __glance and__ snatched up my movies. "You're tall. Will you help me hang a few things? We can put these on."_

"_Yeah, no problem," I told __her. We__ left the room together and walked across the hallway. "So what are you going to school for?"_

"_Don't know yet," she said with a grin over her shoulder. "I mean, I like computers, math, science, but I don't know what to do with it yet."_

"_Sounds like we'll be in the same classes," I pointed out. "Architecture," I stated with a shrug._

"_Nice. Someone__ to study math with," she giggled, giving me a wink as she put the first movie in. "Make yourself at home, Edward. I just really wanted to get away from them."_

_I smiled and nodded, sitting beside her on the bed. "Oh, now I owe you one, Bella," I chuckled._

"_With that girl as my roommate, I'm sure I'll be collecting on that very soon," she said with a laugh._

_I looked over at her as she settled into a comfortable position. I envied how she was so very at ease in her own skin, how she ignored pressure from people around her, and how she knew herself so well. It was refreshing and __comforting, all__ at the same time._

_~oOo~_

"_What the hell happened, Edward?" Bella gasped, glaring at my roughed up clothes and how my backpack was ripped._

"_Nothin'," I huffed, throwing everything down onto my bed, but she followed me in._

"_Look at me," she whispered, reaching up to wipe a smudge off of my face._

_She __gently pulled off my glasses and__ walked into my bathroom. I heard the water running for just a moment, __and then she__ came back __out, drying__ and cleaning them on her t-shirt. She plopped back down beside me and placed them back on my face perfectly._

"_Tell me," she urged, fiddling with the broken strap of my bag._

"_Some...guy didn't like my answers in Statistics," I muttered, embarrassed at the way I'd allowed him to get to me. "Said I made him look bad."_

"_Asshole," she huffed, rolling her eyes, but we both looked up when my door slammed open._

"_Yo, Eddie," Emmett grunted, slamming the guy from class into the door __frame. "Is__ this him?"_

_I nodded, but didn't speak, because we'd been at school all of a month, so I wasn't sure what Emmett was capable of._

_Emmett gripped the sweatshirt of the jock in front of him, looming closer to the guy's face. "Tomlinson, if you touch him again, I'll break your legs. You'll never start another fucking game again. You got me?"_

_Bella giggled softly, biting her lip as she watched the door. She picked up my hand and gave it a squeeze._

"_I didn't mean it, Cullen," Tomlinson groaned, which turned into a rasp, because Emmett's hand squeezed tighter around his thick neck. "I was just playin'. Tell him, geek...I was just playin'."_

"_His name is Edward," Bella snapped, suddenly on her feet and standing next to Emmett, "Not geek, you roided out asshat. And that shit sure doesn't look like playing. The next time he shows you up in class, take it."_

"_What's the matter? Did he refuse to do your homework?" Emmett asked, and my eyebrows shot up, because that was the _exact_ reason the big yeti had lost his temper. "He's not here for you, so find someone else to teach you how to read. Got me?"_

"_Yeah, Cullen, got it!"_

"_Now, get to practice, because I'm not sure I've forgiven you yet. And __you'd__ better tell the whole dumbass defensive line that he's off limits," Emmett growled, shoving Tomlinson down the __hallway, before following behind__ him._

_Bella smirked, shutting my door again. "Come on...fast food drive-thru is on me," she chuckled, tugging me up by my hand. "Now that you've been deemed untouchable, you might be able to relax a bit."_

_~oOo~_

"_Hey," Bella sighed, sitting down next to me on the bar deck of Phil's. "What happened?"_

_I grimaced, looking over at her. "I froze."_

"_You don't like her?" she asked, tilting her head at me._

"_No, Casey's fine," I __sighed, shrugging. "I__ just...can't ever think of anything to say. Back home, girls didn't exactly talk to me."_

"_I talk to you," she pointed out with a smile. "You don't freeze with me."_

"_No, I don't," I said, my head falling back to the wall behind me. "You're different. You're...well, _you_."_

_Bella __laughed, and then leaned over and placed__ a kiss to my cheek. "Maybe you're stuck with me."_

_I grinned and nodded. "Somehow, I'm okay with that."_

_The deck doors opened, and Renee gazed down at us. "Isabella, quit kissing on Edward and get your butt in here. It's getting busy."_

"_Yeah, yeah," Bella groaned, ruffling my hair. "Calculus study session tonight, sweetie?"_

"_Definitely," I told her, pushing up my glasses. "Wouldn't miss it."_

_~oOo~_

"_I don't want to talk about it, Edward," Bella growled, slamming down the paintbrush as we got our new office ready._

"_He didn't hurt you, did he?" I snapped, taping off the windows. "__Because I__ swear to God, Bell... Riley won't see tomorrow if he did. I'll call Emmett right now..."_

"_Settle down," she sighed, sitting on a box and looking up at me. "He didn't hurt me the way that you're thinking. He was just...easily distracted..."_

"_He cheated?"_

"_No, he just liked to...look," she muttered, rubbing paint off the back of her hand. "Always at someone else, and never at me." She grimaced, her nose wrinkling adorably. "Hell, he might've cheated. I don't know." She didn't look up when she asked the next few questions. "Is it wrong to want it to be solely about me? I mean, is it selfish? I just want to be treated..."_

"_Like you're the only thing that counts?" I finished for her, but I formed it like a question. She nodded as I knelt in front of her. "No, you're not wrong. You deserve better than what he did. You're beautiful, Bell. I don't understand how he saw anyone else in the room."_

_Her __deep, hurt-filled__ eyes gazed up at me as tears fell down her cheeks, and I couldn't help but wipe them away._

"_Because he's not as sweet as you," she whispered, leaning forward to kiss my cheek. "Thanks, Edward. I wish you'd give 'how to be a gentleman' lessons."_

_I laughed, shaking my head. "I don't know about that, because I just...smeared paint on your nose."_

"_Edward!" she yelled, grabbing her paint brush and slapping it down the front of my shirt._

_I picked up the roller, wielding it like a sword. "Oh, you _really_ shouldn't have done that..."_

_~oOo~_

"_I always thought that what I felt for you was because we were so close..."_

"_And I just never recognized it, because it just was always there..."_

"_I'm going to give you one more option, something that's been in front of you the whole time, and I know once I do this, our friendship is over..."_

_~oOo~_

I launched out of bed, barely making it to my bathroom, to lose everything in my stomach. My skull gave a sharp punch to my brain, only to turn into a dull throb that was in sync with my heartbeat. I groaned, my forehead pressing to the cool toilet seat.

"Damn it, she was right," I groaned, shaking my head and squeezing my eyes closed when my own whisper was too damn loud.

I'd spent so long trying to find something that just didn't exist, aside from Bella. I'd taken our friendship and turned it into a bad word. It had never been a bad word. It had been everything. Neither of us saw it for what it truly was – _more_. It had always been there. It was perfect and comfortable from the minute we met. We'd just locked ourselves into the title of best friends, and we never even thought about moving into something more.

And I'd almost fucked it up completely. I'd almost kissed her Monday night against her will. I'd been so drunk on beer and my newfound courage that I didn't see what I was doing. I'd forgotten everything that made me...me. And Bella made me an infinitely better person.

I couldn't believe I'd allowed someone like Kate to make me question my own personality, my own beliefs, and my own good manners. I'd always kept a level head, but I hadn't with her, and I realized it all boiled down to my conversation with Bella at her apartment. Once I'd let in that small moment of hope that Bella may have found me attractive or wanted more from me, I couldn't shut it off, so her claim of "best friends," paired with Kate's rejection, had been too much, because I'd loved her from the damn get-go and just hadn't realized it. And that killed me, because I'd needed to prove to myself that I was more than a good listener, a shoulder to cry on, and a geek.

"_My sister loves you man..."_

"_Somewhere along the line, something changed..."_

"_I wanted more with you, but __now, I'm__ not sure of anything..."_

The very second those words were out of Bella's mouth, I'd forgotten how to speak, how to just be with her, because that meant everything had changed. I'd been embarrassed at how I'd acted in front of her, completely convinced she'd never speak to me again, and totally tongue-tied around her. I had no clue how to speak with the Bella I _wanted_ versus the Bella I'd always been friends with. And I'd missed her so fucking much.

I really just didn't know what to say to her, because while I was enjoying my new confidence, I was pushing away the only person that mattered.

My stomach heaved again, but I maintained for the moment, looking up when Jamie shuffled into my room.

"Oh, good! You're up!" He grinned like the devil himself as I groaned at his loud voice. "Emmett's been calling here every hour on the hour since nine o'clock this morning. He needs you to meet him at the office. Some emergency with a Mr. Thompson..."

"Thomas," I rasped, "and I don't have time. I have to go see Bella. I have to talk to her."

"He said you'd say that," Jamie chuckled, shaking his head. "He said get your hungover ass into the office anyway. You can see her tonight. Besides, you look like ass, cuz. You can't go to her looking like that."

"Thanks," I groaned, slowly getting to my feet.

"You're welcome," he laughed. "Here, take these and drink this," he ordered, holding out a few pills and a glass of some red liquid. "A little hair of the dog that bit you... Get a shower, and then we'll talk coffee."

"'Kay," I agreed, taking the pills and tossing them into my mouth. I eyeballed the drink he'd handed me, giving it a sniff, and almost gagged at the stench of it. "What the hell?"

"Just down it quickly," he chuckled. "Take it from someone who knows, man."

I felt like a kid, wanting to pinch my nose at the shit, but damn, it was awful. It tasted like tomato juice, beer, and I swear to God, a raw egg. It took all I had to keep it down as I handed the glass back to him.

"Ugh," I groaned. "Do you have any idea what a raw egg can do to someone? Ever heard of salmonella?"

"Ever heard of Rocky?" he countered with a laugh. "Relax, cuz. You'll live, and you'll thank me for it in like an hour."

I flipped him off and slammed the door to the bathroom, turning on the shower. Once the water hit my skin and my thoughts drifted back to Bella again, my body responded instantly. I was hard at just the memory of her kiss, but it was more than that. It was the feel of her hands in my hair, the sweet taste of her, the way she'd felt lying on top of me.

There had been no stopping me, either. I had to touch her everywhere – well, at least everywhere I could get away with in the sixty second kiss she'd laid on me. Her skin had been soft just above her tight jeans that had been taunting me all night long, and I hadn't been the only one at the bar to notice. She'd been wearing a short sleeve Phil's Sports Bar t-shirt over a long sleeved one, and every time she'd lift her arm to grab a mug or bend over to scoop up ice, her sweet skin had made my brow break out into a sweat.

But nothing had beaten the sound she'd made the very second my hands had reached her ass. It had been a low, sexy ass moan, accompanied by a slight roll of her hips over mine. God, I'd give _anything_ to hear that sound again, and it was the memory of that sound, along with the feel of her strong muscles flinching under my touch, that caused my orgasm to crash down on me.

"Christ," I panted, feeling almost dizzy with the strength of it as my hand worked up and down my shaft, and it was only the memory of Bella that had caused it. I'd never felt anything so strong in my life as the want I had for her, and we'd wasted so much time ignoring it.

"_If you feel the same __by the time__ you're sober, then come to me. I'll wait, sweetie."_

"_I missed you this week. My mind won't change by morning."_

"_You don't know that, Edward."_

Was she serious? Did she really think I'd change my mind? Or did she hear so much drunken bullshit that she'd caged me in with the rest of the jerks she served at that bar?

I let the water cascade down my face as an incredulous laugh left me, because just the mere thought of her had my dick stirring again. "Yeah, don't think this shit's goin' away, Bell," I muttered, shaking my head as my forehead thumped to the cool tile of my shower.

I dressed quickly, not bothering to pay attention to what it was or Jamie's rules. I just needed to get to the office, fix whatever emergency Emmett had, and then get to Bella's.

I stepped out into my living room, and Jamie looked up from the TV. He appraised my clothes and grinned. "Not bad, cuz. It sort of suits you."

I'd put on black jeans, a white button down shirt, leaving it untucked, and a black tie. I waved him off, grabbed the cup of coffee he had waiting for me on the bar, and leaned against it while I scrolled through my phone. There were several missed calls from Emmett, but none from Bella. Not even a text. I frowned, but I knew her. She was leaving the next step to me. She'd said all that she had to say.

"Can I borrow your car today?" Jamie asked, setting an empty bowl into the sink. "I need to run some errands."

"Yeah, drop me off at the office with my bike. You can take it," I told him, pushing my glasses up on my nose.

"I see the specs are back," he noted, grabbing his jacket.

"Yeah, sort of lost a contact when that asshole punched me," I mumbled, looking in the mirror by the door and grimacing at how badly my eye was bruised.

"You look rugged and heroic, Eddie," Jamie laughed, spinning my keys around his finger.

"Don't call me that," I stated, grabbing my bike down from its hooks. "Let's go. The sooner I get to the office, the sooner I can talk to Bella."

"You finally going to kiss that girl silly?" he asked as we made our way downstairs.

I grinned at just the thought of it. "Only if she lets me, Jamie."

"That's my boy!"

~oOo~

It took an hour and a half to fix the errors on the last revisions for Mr. Thomas, and they'd all been my mistakes. I'd been so distracted and so nervous the last week that I had made huge mathematical errors on the plans. They had to be done by Monday so that Mr. Thomas could approve them and then send them off to the permit office. He wanted the first strip mall underway ASAP.

I hit print and grabbed the pages off the printer, handing them over to Emmett. "There. That should fix it," I told him.

"All this shit over a damn decimal point?" he asked, laughing a bit.

"Yeah, I guess," I said with a shrug. "Go show him. We should be okay with that."

"Okay, no problem," he groaned, getting up from his chair. "I'll run them over now. I saw Jamie drop you off... You need a ride somewhere?"

I shook my head no, walking back into my office. "No, I've got my bike. I'll see you Monday," I muttered.

I was out the door and unlocking my chain, barely hearing him say something about rain, but I didn't care. I had to get to Bella. It was late in the afternoon, so I was pretty sure she'd given up on me. Not that she'd answer her phone or any of my texts.

To say I was drenched by the time I stood nervously in front of her door would have been an understatement. I gave my nerves a check, realizing I was only nervous about her forgiveness, because my feelings were cemented.

I knocked on the door, pushing my glasses up my nose and grimacing at how my toes squished wetly in my sneakers. The door opened slowly, and I gazed up at Bella, who looked like she'd been crying.

"Damn, Edward, you're soaked," she gasped, reaching for me, but I stepped back, shaking my head.

"Eleven," I stated, running a hand through my wet hair; I was sure it was now sticking up in every direction. "I had eleven phone numbers forced on me this week, and they're all in my shredder at the office, except for one that I threw away at the cafe. I didn't keep any of them. I didn't want them. And I didn't know what to say to you, except... I'm _so fucking sorry_."

I shoved my hands into my front pockets in order to keep myself from grabbing her, because she looked tired and beautiful and all sorts of adorably confused. She was in pink plaid pajamas and a pink t-shirt, with her hair all twisted up, but pieces were falling down in her face.

"The attention, the confidence was something I needed, Bell," I told her, tilting my head at her. "Maybe I needed it in order to see what I had all along. You're so damn right...it's always been there. And losing you...hurting you and losing you...made me realize that I can never do that again, because I'm absolutely nothing without you."

"Edward," she said, reaching for my hand. "Please come inside. That rain is freezing."

I shook my head, swallowing nervously, because I needed to get this out. She'd said her piece, and I needed to say mine. While I had the courage to do it, I was going to hand it all to her, because I trusted her with everything.

"Just listen, Bella, please." I pushed my glasses up, even though they were spotty with rain drops, and then rubbed my face. "I'm here. I'm sober. And _nothing_ has changed. I still feel exactly the same as I did last month, last week, and last night," I told her, glancing up at her, because the memory of her kiss made my mind stop working. "God, I want to kiss you again...and again. And I don't want to stop," I mumbled to myself, but she heard me anyway.

The sweetest sound met my ears, as Bella giggled and pushed away from her door, walking the few steps to me. She tilted my head so that I was forced to look at her. Warm, patient eyes that had always been there gazed up at me, but she said nothing; she only gently wiped the water from my face, careful of my bruises.

"I don't want to lose our friendship, Bell," I whispered, unable to keep my hands in my pockets when she was so damn close, but she was dry and warm when my fingers caressed her face. I wanted to hold her, but I didn't want to ruin the perfection standing in front of me, when I was covered in rain and road water. "I don't think it's over. I think it'll be better..._more_. And you really, _really_ can't quit on me." I begged the last sentence, almost to the point of whining, because I wasn't sure I meant me or Cullen and Masen – or both.

"Okay," she said softly, a small smile playing on her lips.

"Please, don't... Wait. What?" I asked, a shiver wracking my frame that I wasn't sure was from the Fall rain.

"I said okay," she giggled, cupping my face. "Now, please come inside, because I don't want my first act as your girlfriend to be taking you to the hospital because you're sick."

She wrapped my tie around her hand, tugging it just enough to make me move. Once we were inside, she let go and shut her door, leaning back against it.

"Did you say...girlfriend?" I asked, tilting my head at her.

"I did, and I want to talk all about it," she stated, looking up at me as she bit her bottom lip. "But there's not a surface in my apartment you can touch like...that," she said with a sweet laugh, gesturing to my entire being. "Shower, Edward." She pointed toward her hallway.

I shook my head slowly, stepping closer to her. "Not yet," I breathed, bracing my hands on either side of her head and trying to ignore the squish of my sneakers. "I'm not done, Bell."

Darkening eyes fell to my mouth, only to lock back with mine, but I leaned forward, grazing my nose down her jaw to her neck, and I smiled when she whimpered softly.

"God, you always smell so good," I whispered, pressing my lips to the place where her pulse was pounding. "I have to tell you one more thing..."

"What, sweetie?"

"Something that's always been there, something we already know, baby," I breathed, pressing my forehead to hers, and this time a shiver wracked _her_ frame. "I just need to say it."

"'Kay," she whispered, but I was pretty sure she knew, because big tears welled up in her eyes.

"I love you."

**A/N...Their history should explain a lot. They just..._were_...from the very beginning. And I love Emmett (heehee Never mind that, I know.) So Edward's silence was a combination of embarrassment, nerves, and sudden shyness. He couldn't reconcile how to talk to Bella after recognizing the change in their relationship. His inability to talk to a woman he was attracted to came rising to the surface – despite that it was Bella.**

**Oh, and the three smallest, yet biggest words on the planet just escaped. Squee... I know! :D**

**Coming up will be the best talk..._ever_. And we'll hear from both parties from this moment on. Though, Bella is first up. I think the next chapter will make you guys really see where these two went wrong, but how they plan to approach things. I also think you'll see just what they've been holding back.**

**I need to thank JenRar for not only beta'ing this, but being a voice of calm with this story. To GooberLou for not just pre-reading, but for allowing me to run every scenario past her when it came to this little awkward couple. However, she agrees with most of you...E and B should have just had their heads bashed together to make them see what they were missing. LOL To MedusaInNY, who I hope is feeling better and who better say something soon before I sent a dog sled through the snow to look for her. LOL**

**Like I said last chapter, we'll post again on Friday, and then the final chapter will be Sunday. I look forward to hearing from you guys. So let's have it. Until Friday...Later. :)**


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N...Ah, yes...the squees heard 'round the world. LOL I'm glad you guys approved of our sweet Edward's actions. And I'm extremely happy that you saw how comfortable they were from the beginning. **

**This is technically the last regular chapter and it comes with a LEMON WARNING, though I'm well aware you want this little story to continue. From this point on, we'll hear from both Edward and Bella. As far as continuing...see me at the bottom for an announcement. **

**Now, I do believe Edward said some important words, so let's see how Bella deals with it...**

CHAPTER 6

**BELLA**

"_I love you_."

I stared up at Edward for just a moment, letting those three simple, monosyllabic words wash over me, and for the first time in my life, I meant it when I said, "I love you, too."

I would've meant it when Edward and I first met, because I loved him and Emmett like blood family, like I loved my brother, but somewhere along the line, my love for Emmett stayed the same, where my love for Edward shifted, grew, and morphed into something completely different. It was bigger and better and all consuming, but I didn't see it for what it was, because he was always just...there. He needed me, and we orbited around each other, moving along in life because it was comfortable. Probably too damn comfortable, because we never saw each other the way we should have.

"You're stuck with me now, you know," he said, a sweet chuckle caressing the words as his beautiful green eyes sparkled behind the glasses I freaking loved so much, not because they were attractive, but because they made him...just him.

I grinned up at Edward, remembering the conversation we'd had so long ago. "Somehow, I'm okay with that," I laughed and sniffled at the same time.

A cold hand slipped up the side of my neck, and I squeaked, jumping at his touch, only because he was freezing.

"I know," he sighed, swallowing thickly and licking his lips. "I promise to go shower, but I just... I want..."

"Yeah," I huffed, grabbing his tie and finally giving in to what I'd wanted to do the minute he knocked on my door, because he was beautiful and sweet, all sad and soaking wet. He'd ridden in the rain to get to me, and at some point, I wasn't sure if he'd even show. So the fact that he was there, dripping on my carpet and telling me he loved me, just about had me shaking with the need to kiss him.

I pulled his face down to mine, our lips meeting roughly as the most amazing sound escaped him...or me, but I wasn't really sure, nor concerned. The last kiss we shared had been pretty much controlled by me, but this was all Edward, and it was fantastic.

His lips brushed over mine, along with his tongue and sweet breath. He smelled of rain and our office, like something else I couldn't quite place, but I wasn't sure my brain was really working anyway. Tongues swirled together, and it was more powerful than the kiss we'd shared the night before, because this time, we were both just letting go. And Holy God, I wanted him!

His cool lips brushed across my cheek, and I moaned wantonly when his mouth opened to the side of my neck, just below my ear. But my hands pushed at him, forcing him back just a little, because he needed to get warmed up, and I knew there was just a little more talking to do.

"Shower, Edward," I panted, pained at the loss of his lips on my skin. "I'll light the fireplace to warm you up, and then find you something to wear, okay? I'm sure there's something of yours around here."

He licked his lips and nodded, and I reveled at how dark his eyes had gone. I'd never seen them so needy before, and I totally wanted to drown in them, because I'd been the one to do that. His hair was damp, sticking up in every direction, and his white shirt stuck to him like a second skin, clinging to every muscle, every dip. His black jeans were so heavy with rain that they sat dangerously low on his hips, and every fiber of my being ached to see them fall and hit the floor.

"Christ," I breathed, pulling him back to me, and we smiled into the kiss this time, because it was funny that we just couldn't stop. "You're killing me," I murmured against his lips. "I want to touch you, but you're freezing."

He laughed and stepped away, holding his hands up in surrender. "I'm going," he chuckled, but stopped long enough to kiss my forehead, before kicking off his wet sneakers by the door.

When the bathroom door closed, my head fell back to my front door with a soft thump, and I rubbed my face to get myself under control. I'd never wanted someone so damn badly before. I'd always been able to control that side of myself, even with Riley, but not this time.

Releasing a slow, cleansing breath, I pushed away from the door. As the shower started, I lit the fireplace, something that was rarely used in Florida, but I did love any reason to light it. Next, I walked into my laundry room, where I knew for a fact there was a pair of Edward's jeans. He was over at my apartment so often that it wasn't uncommon for some of his things to get left behind, just like I was pretty sure some of mine were at his place. How we'd never ended up rooming together, I'd never know, because we would've been fine with it. Perfect, actually.

I grabbed one of his button down shirts off the hanger and draped it over my arm to carry them into my bedroom, but I ran smack into a warm, still damp, shampoo smelling wall down the hallway. I whimpered when I realized that he was only in a towel.

"Here, clothes," I told him, taking two steps back, but strong arms encircled my waist. "I don't have any of your underwear, though," I rambled, still trying to move back.

"Why are you running from me?" he chuckled.

"Oh, God, Edward," I whimpered, shaking my head, my brow furrowing as I looked up at him, but I could see that he had no fucking clue as to why I was about to lose my mind. "You really don't know, do you?"

"Know what, Bell? I've showered here before..."

I laughed, shaking my head. "Yeah, and I still stared."

Dear Lord, he was adorably clueless as to how he was perceived. Never mind the glasses that were missing at the moment, never mind his shyness, because he was really fucking gorgeous. He always had been. He'd filled out over the years, but I'd be willing to bet he still saw himself as the skinny eighteen-year-old freshman that needed Emmett's protection. But he wasn't. He had broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and lean, strong muscles over his chest and stomach. His legs were phenomenal, all cut and defined, because he rode his damn bike more than he drove. All of that, _and_ his ass, and that was just...perfect. Women ogled him everywhere we went, but he'd never seen it.

Water droplets clung to his smooth skin, and I ached to touch him. He either needed to get dressed or drop that towel, because a sheen of sweat had broken out all over me. The needy, newly designated girlfriend really wanted the latter, because curiosity was just about to kill me. The mere idea of _more_ with Edward was just about to make me dizzy.

"Stared? Why?"

"You have no idea how handsome you are, sweetie," I whispered, shaking my head. "You never saw it. And I should've told you more often..." I sighed, leaning up against the wall. "Maybe we would have avoided this last week if I had. You're beautiful, Edward. Honestly."

His face tinged pink, but he shook his head in denial. I studied him for just a moment and decided that we needed to talk first, despite how badly I wanted that towel to disintegrate into a puff of smoke.

"Put...something on," I told him seriously, shoving his clothes at him. "We need to talk, and I can't do it while you're not wearing pants."

He grinned and blushed again, stepping back into the bathroom and closing the door. I stumbled back into the living room, grabbed my scrapbook from college, and fell down onto the sofa in front of the fireplace.

"Better?" he asked, emerging from the hallway, wearing the jeans and the shirt I'd handed him, but he hadn't buttoned it yet.

"No," I huffed to myself, because he looked innocently delicious. Luckily, he didn't hear me over the music playing over my stereo. "Sit, sweetie," I told him, patting the spot next to me. "I need to show you something."

I opened the scrapbook, with one side on my leg and the other on his. The whole book was our four years at USF and then some, but what he needed to see was at the beginning and at the end.

"Look," I said, pointing to the first time Emmett, Edward, and I had gone to the beach. "This is when we first met, right?"

His nose wrinkled adorably, because...yeah, he was skinny and pale. His hair went everywhere, but he was only eighteen at the time. He nodded, but looked to me for my point.

I snickered at his put-out face, flipping past years of memories, to the last time we'd gone to that same beach. I pointed to another picture. "This is you just last year, Edward. Remember? We were just about to open Cullen and Masen?"

Gone was the pale skin and skinny chest and legs. He was pretty much how he looked now – tanned, filled out, older, and more muscular. I set the pictures side by side, and watched him take them in.

He frowned, shrugged, and looked up at me. "So?"

God, I loved him more for his modesty, because he just didn't get it, so I leaned over and kissed him quickly.

"You've never been invisible, sweetie," I whispered, running my fingers through his damp hair. "Never. And I'm sorry if you felt that way. I'm also sorry that you were made to feel that friendship was a bad thing, because it wasn't. It was everything to me. I guarded it with my life, so I'm pretty sure that's why I never allowed anything to change it – no matter how attractive I found you or what feelings may have been building. Do you understand?"

He nodded, but didn't say anything, and I pointed at the picture again. He was the only one in it, except for a few girls in the background.

"Look again," I told him, pointing to the nameless, slightly blurry women at the edge of the photograph. "Do you see?"

I remembered taking that picture, because Edward had been so very proud that we were about to embark on the next phase of our careers, so we'd decided to celebrate our college graduation at the beach. The girls were blatantly ogling him, but he didn't see them. He never freaking saw them.

"You took this," he said in a whisper, looking up from the scrapbook, and I nodded. "You were wearing a red bikini..."

I laughed, my head falling back. "Is that what you remember?"

"Mmhm," he said, nodding slowly. "I thought for sure Emmett and I would get into a fight in order to keep you from the..._land sharks_."

I laughed again. "So you don't remember blowing off Miss Polka Dot back there?"

His eyebrows raised. "I did?"

"Yup, you did. She was ever so discouraged and blamed me, if I'm not mistaken. As did the girl standing next to her. They'd tried everything to get your attention." I tilted my head at him, holding up the first photo. "You're not this guy anymore, Edward. You're not weak, or skinny, or really as shy as you think you are. You didn't need lessons from Jamie. And I really didn't think there was anything wrong with the way you dressed before, but..." I shrugged a shoulder, not bothering to finish the sentence, because I knew he got it. I could see it in his eyes. "I'm sorry if you felt invisible," I whispered again, because it had never been my intention. "You really weren't." Tears welled up in my eyes at the thought of all the hurt he might have felt, which culminated into this last wretched week.

I spent our entire relationship trying to cushion things for Edward, but it was a mutual blindness that had hurt him to the point that he felt he had to change every-fucking-thing about himself in order to be happy. How could we have been so damn blind?

His brow furrowed, and he closed my scrapbook, setting it gently down onto the coffee table. "As long as I'm not invisible to you, Bella...that's all that matters to me. I realize that now. I was...an idiot this week, and I can't apologize enough."

Edward fell back against the sofa and turned a bit, reaching for my cheek, but a sweet, confused look crossed his face. "You know...I don't know what I'm doing, Bell. I'm...I've never...I don't know how to be a boyfriend."

I smiled, mirroring his position. "With us, I'm not sure much changes, except...there will definitely be more kissing."

The smile that crept up his face could have lit up the entire state of Florida and probably most of Georgia, and I couldn't help but giggle at him.

"This pleases you, I see."

He chuckled, reaching up to take my hair down so he could thread his fingers into it, but I watched as his eyes darkened again. He seemed to be holding back or nervous about something.

"What do you want, Edward?" I asked, scooting closer to him.

His brow furrowed as his eyes took every inch of my face in, caressing my cheeks with his thumbs. "You," he said simply, but then he started rambling when I gasped at his pure honesty. "Is that wrong? Is it too soon? God, Bell, I know everything about you, and now that I've...that _we've _opened this up...you're all I can think about."

I finally caught my breath, shifting on the couch until I was straddling his lap. I grasped either side of his face, forcing him to look at me, because he looked embarrassed with that admission. "Never, _ever_ be afraid to tell me how you feel, Edward. Ever," I told him, brushing my lips over his. "No, it's not wrong. No, it's not too soon, because you're absolutely right. We know everything about each other, but...that. Kiss me."

As if it was waiting for us to say something, the stereo broke the silence that had settled over us, and Edward's brow furrowed, but a smile played on his lips as he gazed up at me, licking his lips. The song that played the first time I'd almost let him kiss me surrounded us again with the sweet sound of Lady Antebellum.

I slipped my hands into his hair and brought my mouth to his, my stomach giving a twinge at he beautiful moan he let loose between us, because I could feel it everywhere – his chest against mine, his breath, his lips, his tongue. It vibrated around us with such a sensual longing to it that I just about stopped breathing altogether.

_Just a kiss on your lips in the moonlight,_

_just a touch of the fire burning so bright._

_I don't wanna mess this thing up._

_I don't wanna push too far._

_Just a shot in the dark that you just might,_

_be the one I've been waiting for my whole life._

_So, baby, I'm all right,_

_With just a kiss good night._

I pulled away from his mouth, pressing my forehead to his, if only to try and catch my breath, but the song was all wrong.

"Uh, no," I chuckled darkly, dragging my tongue along my bottom lip and trying not to moan aloud with every caressing grip Edward was giving to my back, my ass, up under my shirt, and along my sides. I reached for the stereo's remote, skipping to the next song. "I want more than just a kiss goodnight..." I muttered, tossing the remote somewhere onto the couch.

That seemed to bring Edward to a complete halt, and he stilled my hips, his head falling back to the sofa as he looked up at me through his incredibly long eyelashes.

~oOo~

**EDWARD**

"What, sweetie?" she asked me, scooting impossibly closer to me on my lap, which caused coherent thought to burst into flames next to the fireplace. Her small, warm hand forced my face up. "Edward?"

I frowned, shook my head once, but I couldn't stop touching her. Never would I be able to keep my hands off of her again. It was like she was pulling me to her.

"Bell, I don't..." I huffed a frustrated breath out through my nose, because I didn't know what I needed to say. "I'm not exactly...experienced." The last word barely came out audible, but she knew me. She knew my history.

She smiled softly, tilting her head at me, and gave my lips a long, slow kiss. "I'm not exactly a porn star, Edward."

A laugh barked out of me, but I looked to her to explain, because she tended to keep her personal life...personal, simply out of self preservation. Emmett and I had no shame in threatening her dates, though he was more physical than I was about it; I'd just slap down the guy's background check, silently telling him that I could ruin his life online. Riley wasn't exactly our biggest fan.

"Riley's it," she whispered, shrugging one shoulder, but I looked away from her, my hands gliding up and down her thighs. "Sweetie, look at me," she urged, and I locked back with sweet, dark brown. "It's just us. We define this moment, right here. This will be ours and ours only. Nothing prior to this matters to me."

"I'm scared," I sighed, slipping my hands up either side of her neck and bringing her forehead to mine. I closed my eyes at just how good she felt to hold.

"Me, too."

My eyes snapped open to look at her, and I saw her fear. She was braver than anyone I knew, Emmett included, so I didn't understand what she could possibly be afraid of.

"I'm afraid of the power of this, Edward," she explained automatically, motioning between us. "What if...one day, you find another Kate or Jessica, and I lose you? I'm not sure what I'll do, because my heart couldn't take losing not only you, but our friendship, as well." She sighed, sitting up straight and tracing a finger down my chest. "But I guess that's a chance every relationship takes."

"I didn't want them, Bella," I urged, shaking my head fervently. "I was confused. I wanted you, and I didn't know how to deal with it. There won't be anyone I can be myself with like I am with you."

"I know," she said, nodding slightly. She reached down, grasped the edge of her shirt, and tugged it off over her head. "Then touch me, Edward. Kiss me and touch me the way that you want, and don't you dare stop, because I guarantee you that you can't do it wrong."

It was the first time I'd ever seen my best friend without a shirt on, and she was...perfect. I'd seen her in bikinis and tight shirts, but never completely bare, and she was every dream I'd ever had. She was far beyond anyone I'd ever seen. Her breasts were round, perky, and despite the warmth from the fire in front of us, her nipples were tight and hard. Slipping my hands up her sides, I allowed my thumbs to just barely graze along the underside of them, and then up and over her nipples, my eyes snapping to hers when she moaned low.

Her eyes were dark, flickering between my face and what my hands were doing. Cupping her fully, I let the weight of her consume me. I was already hard and straining against my jeans, but just kissing her had done that to me; having her on my lap, grinding against me, was just about to kill me.

"God, baby, you're so beautiful," I whispered, unable to keep my lips from her skin. I leaned in, giving her nipples a small, light pinch. Then I traced my nose up her sternum and across her collar bone, opening my mouth to her skin, and swirling my tongue. I was going on mere instinct, because the last person I'd been with was over four years prior, and it had been nowhere near this intense. "Tell me what you want me to do," I breathed next to her ear.

"Take this off," she muttered against my temple, but her hands were slipping inside my shirt, forcing it off over my shoulders.

I ached the loss of touching her for the mere seconds it took for her to push my shirt off and drop it onto the floor. But the feel of her bare chest meeting mine was like nothing else I'd ever felt. Her arms wrapped all the way around my head as her lips met mine again, and it was wet, desperate... almost frantic. It was like the five years of knowing each other had snowballed into one enormous indescribable emotion, and it had culminated into this moment. We had no idea how to rein it in. At all.

Her hips rolled roughly over mine, and I hissed, breaking from her mouth. "I won't make it if you keep doing that, Bell," I told her, squeezing my eyes closed in order to maintain my composure.

A sweet giggle met my ears, and I glanced up at her. "Let's get rid of some of the nerves, Edward."

She slithered down my body until she was kneeling between my legs, and I shook my head, suddenly sitting up straight. "Babe, no...you don't..."

"Oh, yes, I do," she stated, pushing at my chest and stomach until I fell back again. Raking her fingers down my body, she grasped ahold of the waistband of my jeans, her eyes looking up at my face.

"Shit," I hissed, when her fingers brushed across my erection over the denim. I truly was terrified of what would happen when she actually touched me. The sound of the zipper echoed loudly in the room, and I found myself suddenly begging for something, _anything_. "Please..."

"Lift up," she whispered, and her fingers grasped my jeans, tugging them down to the floor. With slow, torturous hands, she glided up my thighs, and I realized I was completely naked in front of her for the first time. "Edward, don't hide from me," she said, bracing herself on my chest as she leaned over me and wrapped her hand around my shaft. "You're gorgeous...and perfect."

"And I won't last," I chuckled humorlessly as she knelt again between my legs.

"Good," she snickered, licking her lips. "That means I'm doing something right."

I groaned a laugh, but it died in my throat the very second her mouth neared my dick. I couldn't watch her tongue rake up the underside of my erection, because my eyes rolled back into my head at the warmth, the wetness.

"Jesus," I panted, my hips raising up off the couch on their own once her mouth engulfed me. I wanted to watch, I wanted to see her, but the feelings were too much.

Her mouth left me, but her hand kept the same rhythm when she spoke to me. "Have you ever had a blow job, Edward?"

"No," I admitted. My last encounter was barely what I'd consider an experience worth talking about.

She hummed around me, once again taking as much of me as she could into her mouth.

I was so fucking close.

"Bell..." I rasped, my fists clenching at my sides, because I needed more, faster, which is exactly what she gave me. "So close, so close," I panted, trying my damnedest to be gentle when I put my hands to her face, because I wanted to move her, but she wouldn't have it. In fact, she took me harder, quicker, and when she swallowed her throat around me, I was done. "Oh God!"

Stars filled my vision as I came down from an orgasm that put anything in the shower to shame, and Bella crawled back up my body to brace herself over me. Weakly, I cupped her face, sliding my hands down her bare back as she started to clamber back onto my lap.

"Wait," I breathed, stopping her and sitting up as I realized where we were. I toyed with the elastic of her pajama bottoms, glancing up at her face, and she nodded. "Bedroom?"

"No, here," she whispered, running her fingers through my hair. "On this couch."

I nodded, understanding what she meant. Every deep conversation, every silly debate, and every time we fell asleep watching TV had happened on that very couch. She wanted to change not only our relationship, but what everything that represented us.

I let out a deep, nervous breath as my fingers slid just under the waistband of her pants, grazing the top of her behind and the small of her back. There was no underwear, no barrier other than pajamas, and my forehead fell forward to her sternum, my lips grazing her sweet skin and nuzzling the side of her breasts. Pushing my hands all the way in and taking the pajamas with them, I finally steeled my nerves long enough to look. She stepped out of them, finally naked in front of me.

Friends didn't see each other this way, so the reality of what we now were, of the changes that we were making, and the giving into the powerful pull to each other all came down on me.

"I love you," I whispered, the only thing that I could find in me to say. In fact, I wasn't sure I could say much else, because I was convinced the most beautiful woman on the planet was standing in front of me, waiting for me.

It was so simple to say, but so true, because it had always been there. I'd have died for her when I first met her, because she was my crutch, my pal, the best friend I'd ever had. I would have wiped away every tear when she decided to work for me, because she deserved happiness, and that's all I'd ever wanted for her. But what we didn't know was our love was just more. The feelings had been strong, but we'd just never known it was the real, true thing.

"Love you, too," she said softly, fidgeting a bit in front of my stares, my silence. "Edward, I'm cold," she murmured with a smirk as thunder rumbled long and low outside.

"Come here." I pulled her to my lap, only to lay her down onto the couch. She opened her legs to me, and I settled into the cradle of her thighs, tugging the blanket down over us. "Better?"

"Yes," she sighed, but everything about her wrapped around me – arms, legs, warmth, comfort.

Lady Antebellum continued to play, though this song seemed more fitting at that perfect moment.

_'Cause love only comes, _

_Once in a while,_

_Knocks on your door,_

_and throws you a smile._

_It takes every breath,_

_leaves every scar,_

_speaks to your soul,_

_and sings to your heart._

_If I knew then, what I know now,_

_I'd fall in love..._

Warm hands ghosted down my back to my ass, pushing and pulling at me, and I locked eyes with her, because just her touch, the feel of her smooth, soft skin, and her body lining up perfectly with mine had me hard for her again. I wondered for just a moment if it would always be like this, like I couldn't get enough of her.

"Please," she whispered, her brow furrowing as she leaned up to my ear. "Make love to me, Edward."

My forehead hit her shoulder, and I kissed her skin lightly, dragging my lips up to her jaw, and then to her lips. "I don't have..."

"I'm pretty sure we're clean, baby," she said, a smile playing on her face as she ran her fingers through my hair to soothe me, because she could always read me perfectly. "I'm on the pill, though. If that's what you're worried about."

I paused, brushing my lips across hers, realizing that I wasn't afraid of anything at the moment. I was pretty sure that nothing in my life had felt so right as being in her arms was in that brief moment – my decision to come to Florida for college, choosing my career, or even starting my own business. And I saw everything in her eyes..._right then_. I saw a future and family and travel. I saw a happiness that was almost beyond my comprehension, and really, birth control wasn't in it. All of it was perfect and okay, and I couldn't wait to experience everything – good, bad, challenging – with her.

"I'll never need anyone but you," I admitted softly, rubbing my nose up one side of hers and down the other. "You should know that, Bell. I swear to take care of you and to do my best never to hurt you again." She needed to know these things, because her fear was that I'd find someone else, and as I gazed down at her, I couldn't fathom another woman in my arms. Ever.

"Me, too," she vowed softly, kissing my lips, but her whole body rolled under me, arching up to me and causing me to slip just inside of her.

God, it took all I had not to plunge into her, because the instinct, the urge to claim her, to bury myself inside of her was almost overwhelming. I shook with the restraint, sweat breaking out on my brow.

"Now...please," Bella begged.

I internally vowed that she would never have to beg me for anything again, whether it was my heart, body, or soul.

I pushed into her, both of us releasing out a long, slow moan and our eyes locking. "Baby, you're so..."

"Wet," she finished breathlessly, nodding a bit. "That's all you, Edward..."

With that simple admission from her, I sheathed myself inside of her completely, our mouths opening to each other in a deep kiss, but I pushed myself up over her, bracing my hands on either side of her head as I pulled back, only to thrust back in.

No experience, whether brief or self-induced, came anywhere near how perfect and tight and heavenly as she felt. Nothing was as beautiful as the girl beneath me as she met my hips thrust for thrust. And I couldn't imagine why we'd never given into this for as long as we'd known each other, but I knew for a fact that I would personally be making up for time lost. From the way Bella was saying my name, I was pretty sure I wasn't the only one.

The only thing I did know that was that I absolutely, undoubtedly needed to see her come, because I was willing to bet that it would be stunning and as close to a religious experience as I'd ever see. Bracing my weight on one hand, I glided my other down her body, pausing just long enough to cup her breast, reveling at the arch, the glorious wave that her body did, only to continue to where we became one.

Her head fell back, her breath catching, at the first graze of my fingers over her clit. My rhythm didn't falter, but I let my forehead fall to hers as I continued to bring her closer and closer, because I could feel her tighten around me.

"I love you, Bell. Please come for me," I begged her, because the sight underneath me was just about my undoing.

"Edward," she gasped, her mouth hanging open as her hands grasped the sides of my face. Her legs pulled my hips harder, closer around her. "Oh, God...oh, God...oh, God," she panted, her insides giving a flutter around me, which was the most amazing, intense feeling.

"With me, baby," I said, brushing my lips across her sweaty temple, only to capture her lips with mine.

Because I was so damn close, my rhythm started to falter, but one more swirl to her clit and two more thrusts, and Bella's whole body clenched down onto mine. We both exploded, though I was pretty sure our breathing had stopped.

I maneuvered carefully on the couch so that we were face to face, forehead to forehead. Our legs intertwined as our breathing calmed, and I brushed Bella's hair from her face. I couldn't help but ask her a question that had been on the tip of my tongue since she opened the door to her apartment.

"Were you crying when I got here?" I whispered, dropping kisses to her eyes, her nose, and then her lips.

She nodded once. "Yeah. I didn't think you were coming..."

"I'm not going anywhere, Bell. Ever," I vowed, sighing deeply when her face nuzzled into the crook of my neck. Her little body gave a shudder, and I pulled her closer, tracing up and down her spine with my fingers.

"Good," Bella sighed, and I felt the her smile against the skin of my neck, so I couldn't help but press another kiss to her shoulder.

My eyes grew heavy as the music played on, and I knew that I'd really screwed up with Bella the last week. But while I held her in my arms, as her breathing evened out against my neck, and as the words like girlfriend, love, and always floated through my sated mind, I finally felt like I'd found what I'd always been looking for. And it had been there all along.

_Oh, I used up a lot of chances, _

_but you give them back._

_But if again it comes come crawling,_

_I'm gonna make it last._

_If I knew then, what I know now,_

_I'd fall in love..._

**A/N... Edward never really sees himself as clearly as everyone else does. He'll never understand just what standing in a hallway in nothing but a towel could do to poor Bella. LOL **

**I really hope you liked this story. It truly was a test for me, because it was so different. I wanted to test myself on a few things, and ended up falling head over heels for this couple. I understood Edward from the beginning, because I've known people like him. And Bella had to be strong, had to threaten what they both held most sacred, because it was the only way to make him see what he was pushing away.**

**There is one more chapter. It's the epilogue, and it will skip forward just a tiny bit into the future, though not much. This little story won't continue. I'm sorry if that was a hope for you, but the way it ended was exactly how I saw it. It was a simple idea, and I intended it to stay simple. :)**

**Now...announcement...I am currently working on the notes and the outline for another story in the Gravity series. Yes, more Mercward will be heading your way. :D No, I have no idea when it will post, considering I haven't even started the first chapter, so you'll just have to find patience. For those of you that are new to me, that will be the sequel to _Blood & Glory _and _Sin & Innocence. _I hope you check them out. They are a roller coaster ride of action, love, and suspense, and I'm going to do my best to make the third was just as fun. **

**I need to thank JenRar for beta'ing this. I need to thank GooberLou for pre-reading, though I'm damn sure she'd have killed me around chapter 4 had she not known what was coming. LOL And MedusaInNY...if you don't yell at me soon, I'm going to cry! :.(**

**Okay, so the last chapter will post on Sunday. I hope you'll let me know how you liked this one. I will see you then. Later... :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N... Okay so this is the last chapter of EITIK. A few of you asked me what I was testing myself for. Hmm...it wasn't the story, but how I wrote it. I wanted to know if I could force each chapter to be from another POV, if I could write short chaps and still get my point across, and I needed to see if I could just write something simple. Everything I write is usually so detailed. This wasn't.**

**So this is all sorts of fluffy and lemony goodness, and I hope you enjoy. Let's check in with our fave couple. I think you'll find that some things have really changed, but some things...they're exactly the same. ;)**

CHAPTER 7 – Epilogue – a month later

**BELLA**

"Hey, Bell... Where's my—" Edward called from the bedroom.

"Laundry room," I answered without even letting him finish.

I grinned at the deep chuckle that echoed down the hallway as I finished up in the kitchen. He'd moved in two weeks ago, signing his own apartment over to Jamie, who had decided that Florida winters were a hell of a lot better than Chicago winters.

He'd moved in, because we couldn't be apart – like...at all. We both regretted time lost, so once the terms girlfriend and boyfriend had entered our vocabulary, there was no separating us. It was comfortable and easy, because we were no different than we were before, except with less clothing and a lot more kissing.

I continued to work for him and Emmett, and they were really starting to get busy. Mr. Thomas was impressed by what they were doing to the first strip mall and was anxiously awaiting the next two malls to begin reconstruction, but he'd used his influence by word of mouth. He'd sent three or four more prospective clients our way, so we'd hired on more people. In fact, things were changing all over for all of us.

Emmett now had his own assistant – Betty Russell. She was an older woman, who had construction in her background. He also continued to see Rose on a permanent basis, and it turned out that she fit in with us just fine, because she was the first person he looked to for approval, but also the first person to slap the back of his head when he acted like an idiot. We freakin' _loved _her.

We brought in another CAD specialist, which just happened to be one of my college boys from the night of the fight at Phil's. Paul Rivers was interning for Edward to take the pressure off and earn extra credit at school, and he would be graduating early because of it. I think Edward was considering making him permanent.

My brother had even had to hire a few more construction guys, because things were truly picking up. In fact, I was pretty sure that we would need someone to handle the accounting portion of our office soon, because it was becoming a heavier load for me and Betty. I couldn't imagine just how busy we'd be when Alice finally finished school and added in the decorating side of the business.

Edward begged me to stay on at Cullen and Masen, but there wasn't a chance I could leave them. I continued to run the office and remained Edward's personal assistant, and despite the changes to our personal relationship, hardly a thing had changed in that area. We still worked seamlessly with each other.

"What time are we supposed to be there?" Edward asked, leaning against the kitchen counter, looking as beautiful as ever in just a pair of black jeans and his glasses.

Edward had kept most of his wardrobe that Jamie had forced on him, but he still tended to dress with a touch of his own taste – the Chucks weren't going _anywhere_. In fact, the dress shoes he had were gathering dust in the back of the closet already. The contacts were definitely out, because despite how hard he tried, Edward just couldn't stand touching his own eyeball to put them in every day, so the glasses were back, which was perfectly fine by me. And my sweet gentleman was back, too, though he was a little more confident in his every day life. Emmett, Jasper, and I weren't sure if that was left over from Jamie's doing, or if it had something to do with just how damn happy Edward was, how rock solid our relationship had become. Jasper and Emmett gave the credit to me; Jamie begged to differ. I didn't care, because the changes were for the good this time.

"Some time around seven," I said, opening the oven to check the two pumpkin pies I was baking. Once I pulled them out and set them on top of the stove to cool, I turned to face him. "Are you _sure_ you don't want to go home for Christmas, sweetie?" I asked again for the millionth time. "Your parents were awfully disappointed."

He was shaking his head even as I asked, pushing off the counter and walking to me. "I am home," he stated, shrugging one shoulder, and I couldn't help but kiss him for that. "And I wouldn't want to be around the family right now. Jamie said that Tanya is going to tell them she's getting married and moving to South America after having only known this girl for weeks."

I giggled, shaking my head. "One messed up pair of twins," I muttered, rolling my eyes and turning back to my pies. "I'm really not sure they aren't just trying to kill their parents."

Edward chuckled. "Why do you think Jamie's staying here? Hell, even he doesn't want to be there for that conversation. 'Pass the green bean casserole... Oh, and by the way, I'm going to be moving out of the country with someone I just met at the bar...' He told her to wait until after the new year, but she won't."

I leaned my hip against the counter, trying to imagine it, but I couldn't. "Tanya will make a beautiful bride," I said with a wrinkle to my nose. "She _is_ the bride, right?"

Edward snorted and rolled his eyes, shrugging. "You're asking me? Hell, Jamie doesn't even get it." He grinned at my giggle. "So anyway, you're stuck with me through the holidays."

"Damn, whatever will I do?" I teased dramatically, but found myself suddenly lifted onto the counter, with a warm, very handsy, very dark-eyed Edward standing between my legs.

My laugh was loud as my head fell back, but it turned into a deep, shameless, and wanton moan as soon as Edward's lips and tongue met the skin of my neck. My legs wrapped high around his waist, my heels already digging into his ass to bring him closer. Edward's hands slipped stealthily up my shirt – or his shirt, rather – where he discovered nothing but bare skin.

"Christ, baby," he muttered, pulling away from my neck and gazing at me with lust-hazed eyes. "You're so beautiful." He tugged me closer, almost roughly, but he felt so good.

"We have to get ready," I tried to tell him, but my voice held no authority. "We can't be late to my mom's on Christmas E-Eve..." My voice broke on the last word when I felt his erection grind into me in just the right spot.

All hope of control was lost when his hands cupped my breasts, his chest heaved with every breath he took, and his tongue dragged slowly across his bottom lip, because he still had no clue as to how damn sexy he was. Though, as smart as he was, I was beginning to think that he was testing me all the time, just to see how I'd react to certain faces, touches, and words. His latest addiction was teasing me with those very things..._in public_.

"Please," Edward whispered against my lips, his forehead pressing to mine. "You're killing me in my shirt, Bell."

Yeah, so I tested him, too.

I grinned against his mouth, but my eyes rolled back when his body rocked against mine. "Shower..." I rasped, gripping his neck and opening my mouth to his.

Suddenly, we were a tongue swirling, writhing mass in my kitchen.

"No, here," he grunted, gathering up my shirt and tossing it over his shoulder. "I can't wait..."

I moaned aloud, because Edward's confidence had only grown when it came to sex. He was sensual, sweet, selfless, and absolutely insatiable. He wasn't afraid to voice what he wanted, to tell me how he felt, or even to try something new, but again, I wondered if that was due to me, or something else altogether. I also wasn't sure that he wasn't just making up for all the time lost, because when most college boys were getting laid left and right, Edward had been maintaining an almost perfect grade point average – something that Emmett liked to point out all the time now when he'd catch us kissing...in the office, on Edward's desk, in the copy room. Yeah, work was just fine.

A strong hand flattened against my back, arching my whole body back as Edward kissed a blazing trail down my chest, finally locking eyes with me, before swirling his tongue around my nipple. I gripped his shoulder with one hand, while threading my fingers into his hair with the other to hold him _right there_.

Somewhere in the back of my hazy mind, I heard _Jingle Bells_ and the vibration of a phone across the kitchen counter, and I blindly reached to either smash the damn thing – or at least to mute it. I fumbled with it for just a second, until it finally shut up. I felt Edward's smile against the skin just under my breast, so I tugged his hair until his lips were level with my own again.

"Could've been important," he mumbled, but smiled when I shrugged, pressing his forehead to mine, before gripping my ass and kissing me again.

His tongue grazed lazily across my top lip, bottom lip, only to delve inside my mouth, causing us both to moan shamelessly. My own hands were out of my control, digging deep into the muscles of his back and gliding down to just under the waistband of his jeans.

Breaking away from my mouth, he dragged his warm, wet lips down my jaw. _Jingle Bells_ rang loudly again in our small kitchen, and I groaned, giving the damn thing a hateful look, but sighed when I saw that it was my mother.

"Mom," I groaned, answering the damn thing, but that didn't stop Edward. "The pies are done, Mom. They just have to cool..." I barely got it out without sounding like a porn star, because Edward was doing things with his tongue along my neck that were making my eyes roll back into my head.

"Hey, baby," she gushed. "Can you two do me a favor and stop at the store on the way here? I need more eggs and some marshmallows for the yams.."

I was pretty sure I tried to answer her, but I think it only came out as, "'Kay."

"You'll have to leave soon, because the grocery stores are closing early," she continued on in my ear as Edward was chuckling low and sexy in the other.

I sighed, grabbing Edward's face to stop him. "Eggs and marshmallows. Got it, Mom," I told her, locking eyes with my very disappointed boyfriend. "We'll load up the car, and I'll hop in the shower..."

I hung up as she thanked me, setting the phone back down. "We have to get ready, handsome," I stated softly, cupping his sweet, put-out face.

"You owe me," he huffed as he licked his lips, grinning beautifully when I giggled and shoved him away.

I slipped down from the counter and picked up my shirt, letting my eyes rake over a disheveled, very aroused Edward that looked painfully trapped behind his jeans. His hair was thoroughly ransacked, his lips kiss-bruised, and his eyes were still dark, though they sparkled with a contentment that hadn't been there when I first met him.

I was pretty sure he was wrong about owing him, considering his behavior in the mall two days prior – he'd tugged me into a dressing room, where I couldn't make a sound – but I let it go.

"Fine, I owe you," I conceded with an eye roll. "Now, we have to get ready!"

~oOo~

**EDWARD**

Phil's Sports Bar could hardly be recognized this time of year, because Renee decorated it beautifully for Christmas. They opted to have dinner at the bar, because it was the only place that could accommodate the rather large bunch of us on Christmas Eve.

It was a tradition dating back to when I first met Bella. The first Christmas at USF, I'd decided to stay in the dorms to work on a project, but when I think back, I think I'd just wanted to be close to her, because she didn't have to leave. Emmett hadn't been able to go home that year, either, so she'd invited us all for Christmas Eve dinner. I'd never gone home for Christmas again after that, because Renee had made me feel so at home.

The numbers only grew as we got older. Sometimes, my parents would come down; sometimes, Emmett's would. There were extra friends or girlfriends, there were patrons of the bar that had become close Renee and Phil, but this year, it was just the group that Renee called "her kids" – with the addition of Rose – because she loved all of us just like she loved Jasper and Bella.

The Christmas tree in the corner was filled with sports-themed decorations, though most of us had added to it over the years. Underneath, it was piled with presents, and the whole darkened corner flickered with the colorful lights reflecting off wrapping paper, the glass in the window, and tinsel. What was even better was the palm tree outside wrapped in white lights, casting a glow out onto the beach as Emmett, Rose, Jasper, Alice, Jamie, Kate, and Bella all chatted loudly from the deck. The air was a brisk fifty-something, and it beat a sloppy, slushy, and very fucking cold Chicago winter any day.

"There's my sweet boy," Renee gushed, coming out from the kitchen and setting down a massive stack of plates and silverware onto a few tables that had been pushed together. "Merry Christmas, sweetheart," she said, wrapping me up in a hug that would probably represent comfort for as long as I lived, because she'd accepted me from the beginning just as quickly as her daughter. And she'd never judged me on anything. In fact, she was overjoyed when Bella and I had announced that not only were we dating, but we were moving in together.

"You, too," I said, kissing her cheek. "You need help?" I offered, pointing to the table.

"Not a chance," she giggled, sounding just like her daughter. "The turkey needs a few minutes, and I'm waiting on Jess to get here, because her parents are giving her trouble. They're in the middle of a rather nasty divorce. So go on...get out there." She grasped my shoulders and guided me toward the deck doors, only to scuttle back off to the kitchen.

I opened the door and almost stumbled back due to the wall of loud laughter that hit me. I had to smile, because it was damn well contagious.

"Eddie!" Emmett boomed, waving me over, even though I was making my way toward Bella, who was making room for me in the chaise she was lounging in.

"Don't call me that!" I sighed exasperatedly, rolling my eyes at the snickers that tittered around me.

Ignoring me completely, Emmett continued, "I'm thinking it's time to hire someone for accounting..."

I snorted, settling into the chair, only to pull Bella back against my chest. I bent to her ear, whispering, "Work? Really?"

She giggled, shrugging, and said, "I tried to tell him."

"We can talk about it Monday," I told him. "I'm not talking work tonight," I stated, rolling my eyes at his scoff. "But you might be right," I added, just to shut him up.

"Oh, look!" Rose gushed, pointing out toward the water where several boats were lit up for the holidays and slowly cruising around the bay.

A few set off some fireworks, like they did every year, but this was Rose's first Florida Christmas, so we were reliving it through her eyes.

"Wanna go watch?" Emmett offered, and I noticed he was different with her, calmer, more concerned with something besides just getting laid. And it really suited him, though he threatened to punch me every time one of us pointed it out.

They all got up when Rose nodded her head vehemently, but Bella stayed put.

"Bella-boo, aren't you guys coming?" Jamie asked.

"Nope," Bella sighed, grabbing a throw blanket and draping it around us. "I'm really good...right here," she sighed contentedly, wrapping her hands around a mug of hot chocolate.

I grinned like a lovesick fool up at my cousin, who only smirked back, shooting Bella a wink.

"Can't say that I blame you," he chuckled, rolling his eyes. "Where's that hot thang that works in your office?"

"I really don't think Paul's gay, honey," Bella giggled, shaking her head at the debate they'd had since I'd hired poor Paul on as an intern. "But he's spending the holidays with his family in New York."

"He's totally in denial," Jamie scoffed, and then spun on his heel to join everyone else down at the beach.

I could hear the laughter coming up from our friends on the beach, see the fireworks from where we sat, so I bent back down to Bella's ear. "You _sure_ you don't want to go down there?"

"Uh uh," she sighed, wriggling closer to me and taking my arms to wrap them all the way around her. "I've seen it. Let Rose enjoy it for the first time..." Bella's voice was soft, almost a whisper.

"You still owe me, you know," I teased her, grinning when her sweet giggle shook us both.

"You're going to take advantage of the fact that we have the deck to ourselves?"

"No, I'm taking advantage of the fact that your mom hung mistletoe above the seat _we_ always sit in," I chuckled, nudging her until she looked up.

"She's so shameless," Bella laughed, turning in my arms just a bit, and I kissed her exposed neck as she looked up at the awning over us. I could feel the vibration of her happy laugh through my lips.

"Mmhm," I hummed against her skin, inhaling deeply the scent that I used to never be able to place; now that we lived together, I knew it was soap, shampoo, some sort of laundry detergent, and just...Bella. "God, you always smell so good," I groaned, reaching up to the other side of her face in order to slip my fingers into her hair as my nose nuzzled her skin just below her ear. Finally, I opened my mouth, giving her neck a long, slow kiss.

Bella let out a sound that was a mix of a whimper and a moan, pulling back to lock eyes with me. Her reaction to my statement never changed, even from the first time I'd muttered it drunkenly the night I'd acted like an ass.

"Did you always think I smelled good?" she asked softly, pushing my glasses up for me and tracing her fingers down my face.

I nodded, leaning in to kiss her lips briefly. "Yes," I sighed contentedly, shifting her on my lap so that we could be face to face and I could wrap my arms around her. "Always."

"Were you always comfortable with me?" she asked, tilting her gorgeous head at me. "I mean... Did I _ever_ make you nervous?"

"Nope. Not even when you plopped down on my bed and started rummaging through my stuff," I snickered, wondering where all these questions were suddenly coming from. "Why, baby?"

"You had cool stuff – movies, building models, computer equipment," she giggled, "and I was trying to ignore Em and Lauren."

I grinned at her. "Impossible," I told her. "I don't think I ever wanted a relationship to break up as much as I wanted theirs to fail. Lauren was..."

"Obnoxious."

"Yes," I agreed.

She laughed and shrugged, but her face sobered quickly. She flattened her palms on either side of my face. "She was the first, you know. The first to tell me that there was more to us," she stated, gesturing between us, only to go back to touching my face. "I didn't believe her," she whispered, her brow wrinkling just a bit.

"Emmett was the first to tell me," I admitted. "And Haley..."

Bella's eyebrows raised. "Your..._first_ told you that you liked me?"

"Yeah," I chuckled, more at her incredulous tone than her phrasing of the question. "She told me to figure out what I wanted, and then come back to her. I never did, because I assumed she was blowing me off..."

"We were blind," she huffed, rolling her eyes. "But I can't regret..."

"Becoming friends," I ended for her, smiling when she nodded slowly, slipping her arms around my neck, only to play with my hair.

Her eyes were a deep chocolate, her face free of worry as she gazed down at me. God, she was so beautiful, and I swore to myself that I'd never take what we had for granted again. I'd done that once, and I'd almost lost not only what might have been at the time, but our friendship, as well. She shifted again on my lap so that she was straddling me, and I couldn't help but pull her closer. The blanket we'd been wrapped in fell away, exposing the really pretty red, long sleeved shirt she was wearing. It hugged her in all the right places, ending where her jeans began. My hands tugged at her hips, my fingers slipping under her clothing just enough to caress a minute amount of skin.

Damn, I just wanted her. But I _stayed_ in want of her. And I hoped that those feelings – both intense and so very deep – never, _ever_ went away, because there wasn't anyone else for me. We knew everything about each other, and adding that to our relationship only cemented just how connected we were. It made us...amazing and comfortable and perfect.

"Merry Christmas, sweetie," she sighed, smirking a touch and giving the mistletoe a brief glance.

"I love you, Bell," I countered, because I just needed to say it.

"Kiss me, handsome," she giggled, giving a stealthy glance inside the bar, where Jessica and her boyfriend had arrived and were being greeted by Renee, and out to the beach where our friends' voices were growing closer. "Our time alone is ending. And yeah...I _still_ owe you one..."

I laughed, not really caring who owed whom, because in all reality, it didn't matter. All I suddenly realized, as I pulled her lips to mine, was that everything I thought I knew about friendship and love and relationships when I first met Bella was just a drop in the bucket compared to what I now held in my arms.

So before we were interrupted, which was inevitable, I gave my girlfriend her kiss.

~oOo~

_Two months later_...

"Edward, we really should stay in there," Bella chided, glancing up at me as I tugged her out of the conference room and down to the elevators. "We might miss something..."

"The only thing I miss is you," I told her, pushing her into the open elevator and pressing her into the side. Blindly, I reached for the buttons, pushing the number of the floor our room was on.

"God, do that again," she moaned sexily in my ear. "I can't believe you did that in there."

We were in Atlanta at an architect conference. We were supposed to be learning all about new software, new ideas, and new techniques for making Cullen and Masen better, but damn, if we weren't busy as hell. And I felt as if I hadn't seen Bella in ages. It was the reason I'd requested her to come with me when we'd made arrangements to attend the conference.

Constant work, constant revisions, and constant prospective client meetings had me so busy that I was barely able to think straight. Bella was busy training new employees, because now we were so busy, we needed several people in the office. We now had an accounting department – which consisted of two people – a front desk receptionist, and two additional CAD specialists, along with myself.

Mr. Thomas' project had not only given us some much needed advertisement, but his constant approval of our work had spread around to his associates, and we were flooded with new business. Jasper had even had to contract some of the construction out to other crews.

Our work was spread all over the state of Florida, and soon, it would be into Georgia, and Emmett and I had seen every single mile of it all. In fact, I'd had to meet Bella in Atlanta, because we were coming from two separate places. She'd flown in from Tampa, and I'd arrived from Miami just that morning. Hell, I'd barely been able to talk to her after being away from her for a solid week, much less kiss her senseless, like I was doing in that elevator.

She looked like pure sin, dressed all professionally in a black skirt and red, silky shirt. Sitting next to her in the back of the conference room had been fucking torture. What had started as just simple note passing just to catch up with each other had turned into hand holding, which had eventually led to my hands losing control of themselves. I'd been unable to stop myself from caressing her arm, her fingers, her knee, and finally, up her thigh, where I'd found the lacy edge of her stockings. My mind had snapped, as had my ability to concentrate on the speaker. Suddenly, I'd been obsessed with just _touching_ her. When Bella could barely stay quiet, I'd tugged her from the room.

I grinned at her command, pressing my forehead to hers as my body pinned her against the wall. My hand slid down to her inner thigh, and then up her skirt. "I couldn't help it. I missed your taste, Bell," I panted, squeezing my eyes closed when I found her underwear even wetter than it had been in the conference room. Slipping my fingers just under the edge of her thong and through her folds, I swirled my finger along her entrance, only to leave her panting for more as I dipped my fingers into my mouth. Fuck, she was just delicious.

The car was filled with moans, gasps, and hands over clothing as she tugged me back to her mouth. I wanted to consume her. Just as I wrapped her leg around my hip, the elevator dinged, the doors sliding open.

"Edward," Bella gasped. "Room, sweetie..._please._"

Luckily, our room wasn't far. I couldn't get us inside quickly enough, but as soon as the door slammed shut, clothes started to be roughly removed. Tie, skirt, pants, underwear all hit the floor in a scattered and careless array, but those stockings stayed on. I reached down and picked Bella up as she gently removed my glasses and tossed them carefully down on top of my clothes, which was a good thing, because we'd broken more than one pair.

"Oh, Christ," she breathed, gaping at me and the fact that she was pressed back into the hotel room door. "How... Have you? Are you working out, Edward?" she sputtered, her eyes rolling back just a little as I rolled my hips just right, causing my dick to glide between her folds. Her hands gripped my biceps to hold on.

"Emmett said it would help with the frustration," I grunted out, wanting like nothing else to thrust into her. But it was the truth, because I'd been absolutely lost without Bella for the time that we'd been apart. Nothing worked with getting rid of my need for her. Nothing.

"No, no, no..." she chanted, shaking her head. "No speaking of Emmett in this room..."

I huffed a laugh, but pleaded, "Baby..."

She nodded, holding on to my upper arm with one hand while the other gripped the back of my neck. Her mouth gaped and her breathing stopped as I slowly sheathed myself inside of her, my name spilling beautifully from her lips.

"Oh, Bella. I missed you like this," I grunted, pulling out, only to thrust back into her. "Everything about you..."

"Me, too," she said, her brow sweaty against my own. She leaned in to kiss me at the same time her hips rolled with mine, causing us to moan into each other.

In that position, I wasn't going to last, but I couldn't find it in me to pull her away from the door, because that would mean stopping, and there _was_ no stopping. Hell, I couldn't even wait the extra ten seconds it would've taken to get her into bed. Plus, she was absolutely the most gorgeous thing looming above me, surrounding me, kissing me. And for the very first time since we'd changed our relationship, I felt empowered, because this beautiful creature wanted _me._

"I love you," I whispered against her neck when her head thumped back to the door as her insides started to flutter around me. "Come with me, Bella."

"Oh, God," she gasped, gripping my hair almost painfully. "Edward, I love you..." she breathed as she came hard and fast around me, causing my own plummet into the abyss with her.

My arms shook as I pulled her away from the door, and we fell onto the bed with tangled legs, sweaty brows, and sated smiles. We didn't even bother to pull the covers back or lay with our heads on pillows. The need to be alone, to touch, to just _be_ together was almost overwhelming.

"Let's never go that long again," Bella ordered, wearing the sweetest of naughty smirks.

"'Kay," I sighed, feeling the last of the frantic feelings of being away from her ebb away.

"You know, as your _personal assistant_," she started with a silly-sweet giggle as she ran her fingers through my hair, "I think I should be with you from now on...especially if it's a week-long thing."

I smirked down at her, but damn, I'd just really missed her. I missed our routine in the morning over coffee, our lunches together at the office, whether we worked through them or went out to the cafe across the street, and I missed coming home with her, cooking dinner, and wrapping myself around her in order to even conceive of falling asleep.

"I _am_ your boss..." I mused dramatically, which caused her to burst into full on laughter.

"Maybe you're stuck with me," she said, wearing a sweet smile, but her eyes clouded with the memory of that conversation that seemed to reemerge from time to time.

I chuckled, kissed her softly, and brushed her hair from her face, sighing in utter contentment, because when I'd muttered my next words for the first time so long ago, I'd probably meant them more than I'd ever realized. And I meant them even more now.

"Somehow, I'm okay with that, Bella."

**A/N... There you have it. Like I've said before, this story won't continue, but I tried to give you a HEA that you could see was going to be permanent. All changes between them were for the good, except maybe how busy they'd become, though that has its good points, too. ;) Our Edward's confidence has bloomed, and this time, he's strong, sexy, and obviously insatiable. Lol**

**I truly need to thank JenRar for making this smoother and for beta'ing this thing almost in one sitting. And I need to thank GooberLou for more than pre-reading, because I needed to feed off of her reactions, her ideas, and her cursing my ass out. But brace yourself, Goob...we've got Mercward up next! LMAO**

**I'm gonna toss a few rec's out there for you. **

_**The Breakers**_** by les16. Holy Hot Fisherman, Batman...this is a fantastic story! Don't let the summary fool you, there's so much there, so many amazing characters, but this Edward is to DIE for! Plus, Erin rocks the house! Love you!**

_**Our Yellow House**_** by CaraNo. This goes against my no angst rule, but the mystery behind this story was too interesting to resist. This is a beautifully and differently written story. The beginning is a roller coaster that I couldn't say no to. Its sad and beautiful and just really well done, and I hate to generalize it like that, but telling you anything would ruin the plot for you.**

_**EAC: The Journal of Edward Cullen**_** by katmom. This is exactly what it sounds like and it's perfect. Though it comes with a twist. Alice saw Bella coming way back into the sixties...What does Edward do to bide the time? I'm glad to see that it continues well into Bella and his relationship, with some brilliant changes. **

**There you go...something to read until Mercward starts, which...NO, I don't know when yet. Put me on alert and there won't be any worries.**

**Please review one last time for my little awkward couple, that isn't so awkward anymore. ;) And until the next time... Later! :)**


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